^P^^l:  -;I^^^- 


LIBRARY 

O  F    THE 

U  N  I  VERSITY 

or    I  LLl  NOIS 

\A/25Gt 


C^7<'  ST  HDSF 


THOUGHTS  ON  BUSINESS 


BY 

WALDO  PONDRAY  WARREN 


"THE  CREATION  OF   A  THOUSAND 
FORESTS  IS  IN  ONE  ACORN." 

—EMERSON 


ClilCAGO 

FORBES  &  COMPANY 

1907 


Copyright,  1906, 
BY  Waldo  Pondray  Warren 

Copyright,  1907, 
BY  Joseph  B.  Bowles 

Copyright,  1907, 
BY  Waldo  Pondray  Warren 

All  Eights  Reserved 


v7 


(4 
o 

P* 

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6  ITS 


^  "Even  in  war,  moral  power  is  to  physical  as  three 

parts  out  of  four. ' '  — NAPOLEON. 


m  "  The  men  of  action  are,  after  all,  only  the  uncon- 

^  scious  instruments  of  the  men  of  thotighty 

tj,  — HEINE. 

"7  know  of  no  more  encouraging-  fact  than  the  un- 
questionable ability  of  a  man  to  elevate  his  life  by 
conscious  endeavor."  — thoreau. 


PREFACE 

THIS  book  is  an  outgrowth  of  a  business  experience 
gained  through  many  years  of  association  with  one 
of  America's  great  commercial  institutions.  During 
those  years  I  have  learned,  perhaps  more  surely  than  any- 
thing else,  the  value  of  a  right  thought.  I  have  seen  how 
men's  careers  have  been  marred  by  basing  their  actions 
on  unsound  theories  of  life  and  business.  And  I  have  also 
seen  how  a  change  from  a  wrong  thought  to  a  right  thought, 
perhaps  during  a  moment  of  casual  conversation,  has 
been  the  means  of  advancing  a  man  to  a  higher  place  in 
his  work,  opening  his  eyes  to  a  broader  field  of  opportunity 
and  wholesome  activity. 

I  count  the  acquisition  of  certain  thoughts  as  the  red- 
letter  days  of  my  life.  To  those  moments  I  can  look  back 
and  clearly  trace  long  series  of  fortunate  events,  which 
stand  out  as  conspicuous  witnesses  to  the  value  of  the  ideas 
then  acquired.  It  sometimes  almost  startles  me  to  think 
how  different  the  course  of  my  career  might  have  been 
had  I  not  received  certain  thoughts  at  certain  times  and 
acted  upon  them. 

Many  such  thoughts  have  a  value  only  to  the  individ- 
ual, and  in  connection  with  the  problems  of  the  moment; 
others  have  an  application  to  thousands  of  men  and  wom- 
en, in  connection  with  many  varied  experiences.  It  has 
long  been  my  custom  to  make  a  note  of  such  thoughts  as 

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THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

have  this  wider  sphere  of  usefuhiess,  and  I  have  treasured 
them  more  carefully  than  the  miser  his  gold,  knowing  as 
I  do  their  great  value,  their  capacity  for  unlimited  multi- 
plication, and  their  latent  possibilities  for  good. 

Before  sending  these  ideas  out  into  the  world  I  have 
carefully  endeavored  to  make  certain  that  none  of  them 
is  untrue  to  life  and  experience,  none  a  half-truth  that 
through  a  jingle  of  words  may  pass  for  a  whole  truth,  and 
not  one  a  jumping-gap  for  an  athlete  that  may  become  a 
pitfall  for  the  unskillful.  I  have  been  unwiUing  to  pass 
these  thoughts  with  only  the  test  of  my  own  judgment  and 
convictions,  and  have  submitted  them  to  the  scrutiny  of  a 
number  of  experienced  persons,  in  order  to  have  them 
tested  from  many  points  of  view. 

These  "Thoughts  on  Business"  were,  for  the  most 
part,  first  pubhshed,  one  a  day,  in  a  list  of  newspapers. 
With  some  revision  and  the  addition  of  new  matter,  they 
are  now  presented  in  this  form.  The  author  sincerely 
hopes  that  the  reader  will  find  them  in  some  degree  helpful 
in  moulding  the  spirit  of  a  well-rounded  business  life. 

Waldo  Pondray  Warren. 

Chicago,  September,  igoj. 


CONTENTS 


STARTING   POINTS 

The  Spirit  of  Progress . 

What  is  Success? 

The  Right  Standpoint 

A  Motive  for  Action 

The  Moral  Foundation 

The  Greatest  Business  Maxim 

Be  a  Man  First  . 

All  Work  a  School 

Do  More    .... 

Turning  Points 

Think  Big 

Not  Biggest  But  Best 

Doing  Big  Things 

Hidden  Strength 

Be  a  Whole  Man 

The  Best  as  a  Standard 

Consider  the  Need 

Looking  Ahead 

Ideas  .... 

Pioneer  Work 

Opportunities  That  Wait 

Where  the  Trouble  Lies 

The  Lever  Principle     . 

Learn  to  Ask  Questions 

How  to  Acquire  Tact  . 

Courtesy:  A  Business  Ideal 

Are  You  a  Diplomat  ? . 

SELF-IMPROVEMENT 

Appreciate  Your  Capacity    , 
Time  to  Think 


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THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


Are  You  in  a  Treadmill  ? 

Continuous  Growth  Necessary 

Ability  is  Capital 

The  Reliable  Man 

Are  You  Waiting  to  be  Told  ? 

Learn  While  You  Can 

Get  a  Broad  View 

From  Acorn  to  Oak 

Study  for  the  Place  Ahead    . 

A  Great  Art 

The  Men  of  To-morrow 

Not  Counting  the  Time 

"I  Seen"    .... 

The  Word  to  the  Wise      . 

Learn  to  be  Thorough 

Practice-Work 

Working  for  Yourself  . 

Headed  for  the  Top 

The  Right  Track 

Picking  the  Way 

Unfolding  a  Task 

Through  Other  Eyes 

The  Force  of  Illustration 

All  Business  Akin 

The  Contagion  of  Littleness 

Betting  a  Million  to  One 

The  Danger  of  Personal  Influence 

How  Friends  May  Limit  Us 

Make  Some  New  Friends 

"Seeing  Things" 

The  Value  of  Travel    . 

Use  Your  Wastebasket  More     . 

When  Letters  are  Compared 

Measuring  Experience 

Our  Daily  Work  Sacred 

ABOUT   METHODS 

Pulling  Together  as  One 
Co-Operation 

10 


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87 
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T   H    C^    r    G   H   T   S 


O   N 


BUSINESS 


Newness  Inevitable 
Don't  Split  Hairs 
Keep  Your  Promises    . 
Give  Credit  for  Ideas 
Perfecting  the  Product 
Systematic  Criticism 
The  Looks  of  a  Letter 
Doing  More  than  You  Can 
Leave  Worry  to  the  System 
Red  Tape,  the  Robber 
\'ary  the  Work    . 
Interruptions  Waste  Time 
The  Mote  and  the  Beam 
Fixed  Salaries 
Unconscious  Disorder 
Too  Much  Noise 
Mind  the  Little  Things 
How  Tim.e  is  Wasted 
A  Tallow-Candle  Standard  . 
Theories  and  Facts 
Play  Fair    . 

Waiting  in  the  Ante-Room 
Provide  against  Dispute 
The  New  Man  in  Power 
Suspense    .... 

DEVELOPING   THE   WORKERS 
Multiply  Your  Assets  . 
Teaching  Employes 
\\'hat  Employes  Need 
Stooping  to  Conquer 
The  U^nwise  Reprimand 
A  Task  for  Reformers 
Helping  the  Unambitious 
The  Master's  Eye 
In  the  Pay  Envelope    . 
Good  Reading  for  Employes 
The  Development  of  Enthusiasm 
A  Promotion  System 


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lOI 

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III 

H2 


II 


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127 
128 


THOUGHTS 


O   N 


BUSINESS 


The  Other  Side  . 

Enlightened  Selfishness     . 

A  Thoughtless  Waste  . 

Preventing  Temptation     . 

Follow  up  your  Work  . 

Wasting  Time 

Blue  Laws  Unnecessary 

Criticising  Superiors 

What  the  Employer  Doesn't  Know 

Why  Mistakes  are  Made 

Selecting  a  Man 

Missionaries  of  Refinement 

WITH  THE   MANAGER 

The  Manager's  Responsibility 

Going  to  Headquarters 

Don't  be  Too  Necessary 

Handling  Men 

Talk  it  Over 

The  Friendly  Manager 

The  Touch  of  Power   . 

Weigh  Your  Words 

Show  Your  Appreciation 

Give  Credit  for  the  Best 

The-  Bane  of  Fear 

Golden  Eggs 

The  Frost  that  Blights 

Forsaking  the  Point 

Move  on  Ahead 

Snap  Judgment 

The  Career  of  a  Man  . 

Discharging  a  Man 

The  Disturbing  Element 

"Let  Us" 

Hold  Your  Temper 

The  Manly  Apology 

Impersonal  Criticism 

The  Scrutiny  of  Detail 

Common  Sense  Perfection 

12 


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165 
166 
167 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


Profitable  Reforms 

Let  the  Boy  Do  It 

Running  Down  an  Error 

Breaking  the  New  Man  In 

Enjoying  Life  as  You  Go 

A  New  Broom 

Open  the  Channels     . 

BUYING  AND   SELLING 

Civilization  Advanced  by  the  Seller 

The  Salesman's  Work 

The  Goods  Behind  the  Man 

Courtesy  Draws  Business 

"Some  an  Hundred  Fold"    . 

Don't  Justify  a  Defect 

Tactful  Dealing 

A  Hint  for  Salesmen 

Common  Sense  in  Selling 

Know  Your  Goods 

While  Others  Wait 

Calling  on  King  Dodo 

The  Pink  Tape  on  the  Celery 

The  Percentage  Basis 

WORDS   BY  THE  WAY 

Feel  Your  Way  . 

Getting  a  Scheme 

Careful  Investments     . 

Look  Beneath  the  Surface 

"  Good  Morning" 

Moral  Ventilation 

Please 

The  Value  of  Humor 

Power  in  Poetry 

Pass  It  On 

Reaching  His  Audience 

Acquiring  Good  Taste 

Rotten  Apple  Economy 

The  Tattered  Shirt  Sophistry 

n 


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19s 
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THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


Not  Here  Below . 
How  Honest  are  You  ? 
Unwise  Changes. 
Refusing  to  Grow  Old 
Business  Methods  in  Schools 
Are  We  Actors  ? 
Letters  that  Do  Good 
Burn  the  Thistle  Seed 
Reconsider  Lost  Efforts 
A  Grain  of  Salt 
It  Pays  to  Kick  . 
Newspaper  Individuality 
The  Ideal  Newspaper 
Comparative  Typography 
Honest  Advertising 

GLEANINGS 

Epigrams  and  Paragraphs    . 
The  Outlook 


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237 


H 


STARTING    POINTS 


THOUGHTS    ON    BUSINESS 


THE  SPIRIT  OF  PROGRESS 

The  greatest  asset  a  business  or  an  individual  can 
have  is  the  Spirit  of  Progress.  Without  that  all  else  is 
largely  in  vain.     With  it  every  good  thing  is  possible. 

WTiat  is  the  Spirit  of  Progress?  It  is  the  desire  to 
know  what  constitutes  true  success  and  the  willingness  to 
take  the  patient  steps  which  lead  to  it;  the  desire  to  correct 
errors,  traits  and  tendencies  which  retard  progress,  and 
the  willingness  to  receive  new  ideas  and  act  upon  them; 
the  desire  to  act  from  sound  motives,  and  the  wilhngness  to 
give  up  false  and  temporary  success  for  vital  and  perma- 
nent growth;  the  eagerness  to  utiUze  every  wholesome 
opportunity,  the  enthusiasm  to  strive  for  excellence  for 
its  own  sake,  and  the  energy  to  push  on,  pausing  only  when 
the  victory  is  won. 

With  this  spirit  the  growth  of  a  business  is  inevitable. 
It  is  as  natural  as  for  a  tree  to  grow. 

The  world  may  furnish  many  opportunities,  apprecia- 
tion will  quicken  some  motives,  and  the  onward  movement 
of  the  world  can  change  some  conditions,  but  that  spark 
of  fire  —  the  Spirit  of  Progress  —  must  come  from  with- 
in, must  spring  up  in  a  moment  of  noble  resolve,  and 

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THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

must  never  be  allowed  to  die,  never  to  wane,  never  to 
waver. 

Examine  into  the  lives  and  actions  of  men  who  have 
made  the  real  successes  in  any  wholesome  line  of  activity 
and  you  will  see  how  that  vital  spark  made  all  their  achieve- 
ments possible  —  and  maybe  you  will  find  the  spark 
yourself. 


l8 


THOUGHTS        ON        B    U  *S  1   N    i:   S   S 

WHAT   IS   SUCCESS? 

The  definition  of  success  is  undergoing  a  change. 
The  publicity  given  to  the  methods  and  practices  of  many 
men  of  wealth  and  business  control  has  done  much  to 
arouse  the  better  nature  in  every  man  to  question  the 
validity  of  such  success.  The  ridiculous  utterances  of 
certain  specialists  whose  devotion  to  a  theory  has  warped 
their  common  sense  have  made  plain  to  the  practical  man 
that  specialism  may  become  the  reduction  to  absurdity. 
The  man  who  thinks  so  much  about  his  business  that  he 
cares  nothing  about  literature  is  also  losing  caste.  And 
the  man  who  is  so  deeply  schooled  in  the  theoretical  side  of 
life  that  he  has  no  practical  point  of  contact  with  the  world 
may  also  be  regarded  as  out  of  the  race  for  true  success. 

By  their  observation  of  extreme  types  men  are  being 
forced  to  the  conclusion  that  moderation  in  all  things  is 
essential  to  a  true  judgment  of  all  things;  and  that  the 
ideal  life  is  the  well-rounded  life,  with  broad  views,  broad 
culture,  broad  sympathies  and  broad  purposes  for  good  — 
the  ability  to  separate  the  good  from  the  bad  in  all  lines  of 
thought  and  activity.  In  this  broader  view  business  loses 
rank  as  an  end  and  becomes  a  means  to  an  end  —  a 
means  for  making  a  livelihood,  a  field  of  wholesome  activ- 
ity, and  a  school  for  the  development  of  character  and 
mental  vigor. 


19 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   RIGHT   STANDPOINT 

The  progressive  man  naturally  enjoys  hard  work, 
especially  such  work  as  calls  for  resource,  initiative  and 
skill.  He  regards  his  work  as  a  school  in  which  every 
new  experience  is  an  interesting  and  helpful  lesson.  He  is 
eager  to  take  new  responsibiUties,  eager  to  do  any  piece 
of  unfamiliar  work,  and  eager  to  do  more  and  more  skill- 
fully the  work  he  already  knows  well. 

The  unprogressive  man  —  poor  fellow  —  often  has 
just  as  much  natural  abihty  as  the  other,  but  he  has  a 
wrong  idea  about  work.  Sometimes  he  works  hard  in 
the  wrong  direction  because  he  thinks  it  is  the  right  one. 
More  often  his  failure  to  get  ahead  is  due  to  the  fact  that 
he  does  not  bring  all  his  powers  and  enthusiasm  to  bear 
upon  the  work  in  hand.  His  whole  heart  is  not  in  his 
task.  The  unprogressive  man  does  not  consider  his  work 
a  school,  but  vaguely  imagines  that  it  is  a  sort  of  punish- 
ment to  be  avoided  if  possible.  It  matters  not  to  him 
that  the  world  needs  to  have  the  work  done  —  he  thinks 
only  of  his  own  immediate  comfort,  and  in  so  doing  loses 
the  great  reward  which  the  world  pays  to  its  real  helpers  — 
the  joy  of  a  useful  life. 

If  you  know  an  unprogressive  man  —  one  who  shirks 
because  he  thinks  he  gains  ease,  and  who  works  only 
from  necessity  —  help  him  to  see  these  two  opposite 
standpoints.  One  clear  glimpse  of  the  true  relations 
between  him  and  his  work  will  sometimes  inspire  a  man  — 
and  give  to  the  world  another  progressive  worker. 


20 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

A   MOTIVE   FOR   ACTION 

To  allow  ourselves  to  be  cheated  out  of  an  opportunity 
is  not  only  unfair  to  ourselves,  but  it  is  unfair  to  others, 
for  it  also  cheats  them  out  of  the  good  we  might  be  able  to 
do  them  if  we  had  taken  advantage  of  the  opportunity. 

Let  us  hope  that  there  are  few  men  selfish  enough  to 
think  that  a  man  owes  nothing  to  his  fellow  men.  It  is 
a  commonly  accepted  thought  that  a  man  has  certain 
moral  obligations  to  others,  and  that  he  who  willfully 
neglects  them  forfeits  his  right  to  the  respect  of  his  fellows. 

The  endeavor  to  attain  proficiency  in  any  wholesome 
line  of  work,  to  surpass  the  standards  of  merit  that  have 
been  attained  by  others,  and  to  improve  continually  on 
our  own  past  achievements,  is  the  spirit  of  the  honorable 
life.  It  is  not  for  ourselves  alone  that  we  strive  to  attain 
a  high  standard,  but  because  we  should  do  our  share 
toward  the  general  progress  of  the  world.  To  see  it  thus 
gives  new  energy  to  our  endeavors  and  makes  success 
more  sure.  A  man's  interest  cannot  be  entirely  separated 
from  that  of  his  fellows.  The  highest  success  cannot  be 
attained  without  something  of  altruism  in  our  motives, 
for  that  Ufts  our  thoughts  to  a  higher  capacity  than  self- 
ishness can  possibly  do.  In  order  to  do  your  best  for 
yourself  you  are  forced  to  be  an  altruist. 


21 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE    MORAL    FOUNDATION 

Every  ambitious  worker  keenly  desires  to  find  what  is 
commonly  called  "the  secret  of  success."  Many  writers 
have  endeavored  to  assist  in  finding  it,  and  much  good  has 
been  accomplished  by  their  efforts.  Each  man,  according 
to  his  experience  and  purposes,  sees  the  question  from  a 
different  viewpoint.  But  however  varied  may  be  the 
views  and  the  manner  of  expressing  them,  all  men  are 
practically  agreed  on  the  indispensable  value  of  moral 
quaUties.  The  very  strength  of  the  mind  lies  in  pureness 
of  heart.  Judgment  is  a  perception  of  the  true  relations 
of  things,  energy  is  born  of  purpose,  accuracy  is  the  love 
of  perfection,  and  sincerity  —  the  corner  stone  of  every 
worthy  structure  —  is  quarried  only  from  the  depths  of 
the  truly  honest  heart. 

Any  so-called  "secret  of  success"  which  ignores  the 
moral  foundation  is  either  superficial  or  unsafe.  Clever- 
ness without  morahty  deceives  most  the  persons  who 
practice  it.  To  have  the  letter  without  the  spirit  makes 
machines  of  men ;  and  to  have  any  spirit  less  than  the  best 
is  to  miss  something  in  the  measure  of  success.  Crafty 
policies  are  not  wisdom,  but  are  ignorant  substitutes  for 
sound  morals.  Nothing  can  ever  take  the  place  of  those 
great  fundamentals  —  honesty,  sincerity  and  a  pure 
mind.  The  real  secret  of  success  must  ever  be,  "Think 
right,  do  right." 


23 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE    GREATEST    BUSINESS    MAXIM 

The  business  life  affords  perhaps  the  best  opportunity 
to  test  the  practical  value  of  the  Golden  Rule.  It  is  sig- 
nificant that  business  men  are  coming  more  and  more  to 
see  and  advocate  this  rule  —  not  merely  as  a  result  of 
moral  teachings  received  outside  of  business  circles,  but 
as  a  conclusion  which  business  experience  itself  has  forced 
upon  them. 

In  business  affairs  the  practice  of  the  Golden  Rule 
stands  for  all  that  is  honorable,  and  progressive,  and  just. 
The  business  houses  which  attain  a  measure  of  prestige 
and  wholesome  reputation  are  those  in  which  this  spirit 
in  some  degree  obtains.  And  perhaps  no  wrong  trait  in 
the  personality  of  a  business  more  quickly  receives  the 
censure  and  discredit  of  other  business  men  than  does  the 
absence  of  fairness  —  which  is  but  another  way  of  saying 
the  absence  of  the  spirit  of  the  Golden  Rule. 

With  a  record  of  centuries  to  attest  its  value,  and  the 
evidences  in  its  favor  accumulating  day  by  day  as  men 
become  more  enlightened,  the  Golden  Rule  stands  pre- 
eminent as  the  world's  greatest  business  maxim.  The 
toppling  towers  of  vast  business  interests  that  have  been 
built  on  a  less  worthy  basis  show  the  insecurity  of  all 
seeming  success  obtained  otherwise  than  by  acting  habitu- 
ally on  this  fundamental  moral  law. 


23 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

BE   A   MAN   FIRST 

Before  one  can  be  a  sound  business  man  he  must 
first  be  a  sound  man.  When  an  artist  paints  a  picture 
containing  human  figures  he  must  not  try  to  hide  defec- 
tive proportions  of  a  figure  by  the  clothing,  but  must  first 
make  sure  that  the  outHne  of  the  figure  is  correct  before 
he  attempts  to  paint  the  clothing.  One  of  the  worst  faults 
a  picture  can  have  is  to  be  "out  of  drawing."  No  amount 
of  wonder-work  in  color  or  conception  can  atone  for  faults 
in  the  proportion  of  the  figures.  And  there  are  few  to 
defend  a  picture  in  which  such  faults  are  to  be  found. 

There  are  some  persons  in  business  life  who  think  they 
can  cover  up  the  evidences  of  a  defective  manhood  by 
laying  on  thick  the  colors  of  an  outward  business  success. 
They  think  that  if  they  can  only  get  the  place  and  the 
power  they  will  also  get  the  honor  and  the  satisfaction  that 
come  from  worthy  achievement.  But  hke  the  unskilled 
artist,  they  deceive  themselves  most  of  all.  Nothing  can 
atone  for  defective  character,  and  nothing  can  hide  it.  A 
few  superficial  persons  may  give  undue  credit  to  mere 
appearances,  but  the  critics  whose  opinions  determine  the 
real  standing  of  the  work  will  not  be  deceived  —  and  their 
criticisms  will  take  away  any  shallow  satisfaction  that 
may  be  found  in  superficial  applause.  Nothing  but 
sound  manhood  can  win  the  true  reward  of  sound  man- 
hood. 


24 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

ALL   WORK   A   SCHOOL 

The  man  who  gets  the  most  out  of  life  is  the  man  who 
lives  to  learn.  An  old  man,  walking  by  the  banks  of  a 
river,  said  to  his  grandson:  "See  this  river,  my  child.  It 
has  a  different  interest  for  each  one  of  us.  That  man 
yonder  thinks  of  it  merely  as  a  place  to  fish.  The  boys 
down  there  think  of  it  as  a  swimming-pool.  The  man 
who  owns  the  sawmill  considers  it  a  part  of  his  workshop. 
Those  young  people  in  the  launch  think  of  it  as  a  pleasure 
stream.  The  farmer  finds  that  it  enriches  his  fields.  The 
cows  come  down  to  drink.  The  old  settlers  tell  us  of  a 
battle  that  was  fought  near  the  bend.  And  you  and  I 
find  it  a  many-sided  object  lesson.  You  are  soon  to  go 
out  into  the  world,  and  you  will  find  life  like  this  river. 
You  will  observe  that  every  man  thinks  of  it  from  his  own 
standpoint.  Some  are  idlers  along  the  banks  waiting  for 
chance  to  bring  them  what  they  want ;  some  row  up  stream 
and  some  float  down;  some  find  refreshment,  some  only 
pleasure;  some  see  only  the  hard  work;  and  some  are 
looking  back  at  the  past,  thinking  of  the  battles  that  have 
been  fought  in  years  gone  by.  But  you  and  I  will  find  it 
a  great  object  lesson  —  a  school  where  all  the  activities  of 
men  and  women  become  lessons,  and  where  progress  in 
wisdom  and  goodness  is  the  chief  motive  in  all  that 
we  do." 


as 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

DO    MORE       ~ 

The  man  who  makes  the  best  progress  is  the  man  who 
does  more  than  he  is  told.  Some  men  think  they  have 
done  their  full  duty  when  they  perform  certain  routine 
work.  They  consider  that  they  are  being  paid  fifteen 
dollars  a  week  for  fifteen  dollars'  worth  of  work  —  and 
they  measure  out  the  correct  amount  with  as  much  care 
as  the  grocer  measures  out  rice,  putting  in  and  taking  out  a 
few  grains  until  the  scales  balance. 

But  the  progressive  man  goes  about  his  work  with  the 
spirit  of  the  athlete.  The  satisfaction  of  accomplishing  a 
feat,  the  knowledge  that  with  each  trial  more  skill  is 
developed,  forms  one  of  the  best  incentives  to  good  work. 
The  athlete  does  not  confine  his  practice  to  a  certain 
number  of  runs  and  jumps,  but  keeps  at  it  until  he  has 
achieved  some  greater  degree  of  skill  than  he  ever  had 
before.  He  delights  in  attempting  harder  and  harder 
feats  because  it  means  more  and  more  skill. 

Thus  does  the  truly  progressive  man  love  his  work. 
He  does  not  consider  that  he  is  working  merely  for  his  salary 
nor  for  his  employers,  but  for  himself  —  for  the  develop- 
ment of  his  individual  capacity  and  skill.  He  delves  into 
things  not  required  of  him,  because  he  wants  to  gain  power 
to  do  more  —  because  that  is  the  normal  impetus  of  a 
progressive  mind. 


26 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

TURNING   POINTS 

Courtesy,  kindness  and  thoughtfulness  always  have 
their  reward.  History  is  full  of  incidents  which  show 
upon  what  little  things  careers  have  turned.  And  where 
one  such  incident  is  known  there  are  thousands  that  are 
unknown.  A  man  is  impressed  by  a  lad's  poHshed  shoes, 
makes  inquiries  which  lead  to  his  employment,  and  the 
boy  becomes  a  captain  of  industry.  A  cheerful  smile 
wins  a  friend,  who  introduces  us  to  a  circle  of  helpful  men 
and  women,  whose  ideas  raise  our  standards  and  influence 
our  lives.  Even  the  simplest  httle  acts  of  courtesy  and 
kindness  have  been  known  to  open  broad  channels  for 
good. 

The  reverse  is  also  true.  A  man  lost  a  valuable  busi- 
ness partnership  because  he  made  an  unkind  remark 
about  another  on  the  day  the  papers  were  to  have  been 
signed.  We  never  know  what  friendships  and  opportu- 
nities are  closed  to  us  because  of  unfavorable  impressions 
made  by  the  neglect  of  the  Httle  amenities  of  life. 

We  travel  a  road  that  branches  in  many  directions. 
One  careless  turning  may  affect  our  entire  journey.  Only 
by  making  sure  that  we  are  taking  the  right  direction  at 
every  point  can  we  hope  to  reach  the  best  that  is  possible  to 
us.  But  if  each  purpose  and  act  expresses  the  highest 
standards  we  know,  any  hour  may  become  the  gateway 
to  a  larger  field  of  opportunities. 


27 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THINK   BIG 

Men  often  think  of  a  position  as  being  just  about  so 
big  and  no  bigger,  when,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  a  position  is 
often  what  one  makes  it.  A  man  was  making  about 
$1,500  a  year  out  of  a  certain  position  and  thought  he  was 
doing  all  that  could  be  done  to  advance  the  business.  The 
employer  thought  otherwise,  and  gave  the  place  to  another 
man  who  soon  made  the  position  worth  $8,000  a  year  — 
at  exactly  the  same  commission. 

The  difference  was  in  the  men  —  in  other  words  in 
what  the  two  men  thought  about  the  work.  One  had  a 
little  conception  of  what  the  work  should  be,  and  the  other 
had  a  big  conception  of  it.  One  thought  little  thoughts 
and  the  other  thought  big  thoughts. 

The  standards  of  two  men  may  differ,  not  especially 
because  one  is  naturally  more  capable  than  the  other,  but 
because  one  is  familiar  with  big  things  and  the  other  is  not. 
The  time  was  when  the  former  worked  in  a  smaller  scope 
himself,  but  when  he  saw  a  wider  view  of  what  his  work 
might  be  he  rose  to  the  occasion  and  became  a  bigger  man. 
It  is  just  as  easy  to  think  of  a  mountain  as  to  think  of 
a  hill  —  when  you  turn  your  mind  to  contemplate  it.  The 
mind  is  like  a  rubber  band  —  you  can  stretch  it  to  fit 
almost  anything,  but  it  draws  in  to  a  small  scope  when  you 
let  go. 

Make  it  your  business  to  know  what  is  the  best  that 
might  be  in  your  line  of  work,  and  stretch  your  mind  to 
conceive  it,  and  then  devise  some  way  to  attain  it. 

28 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

NOT  BIGGEST  BUT  BEST 

The  inclination  to  measure  things  by  quantity  rather 
than  by  quality,  warps  the  judgment,  and  must  be  avoided 
by  the  man  who  would  arrive  at  a  just  estimate.  It  takes 
something  more  than  size  to  constitute  the  best. 

The  salesman  who  oversells  his  customers  may  make 
the  best  showing  on  the  books,  but  he  may  at  the  same 
time,  be  undermining  the  good  will  of  the  business.  The 
biggest  salary  is  not  always  the  best  position.  The  most 
widely  circulated  novel  is  not  always  the  best  book.  The 
large  numbers  who  support  a  theory  do  not  assure  its 
soundness.  The  largest  business  may  not  afford  the  best 
opportunity.  The  costliest  material  may  not  make  the 
most  desirable  garment.  And  the  most  money  does  not 
necessarily  make  the  best  man. 

To  measure  by  magnitude  rather  than  by  intrinsic 
worth  and  practical  utility  is  superficial.  The  best  evi- 
dences of  the  progress  of  the  world  are  not  that  we  build 
larger  houses,  and  travel  faster,  and  do  business  on  a 
bigger  scale,  but  that  we  are  becoming  more  disposed  to 
look  beneath  the  surface  of  things,  and  judge  not  from 
appearances  but  from  actual  worth.  Not  quantity  but 
quality  is  the  true  standard. 


29 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

DOING    BIG   THINGS 

Big  things  are  only  little  things  put  together.  1  was 
greatly  impressed  with  this  fact  one  morning  as  I  stood 
watching  the  workmen  erecting  the  steel  framework  for  a 
tall  office  building.  A  shrill  whistle  rang  out  as  a  signal,  a 
man  over  at  the  engine  pulled  a  lever,  a  chain  from  the 
derrick  was  lowered,  and  the  whistle  rang  out  again.  A 
man  stooped  down  and  fastened  the  chain  around  the 
center  of  a  steel  beam,  stepped  back  and  blew  the  whistle 
once  more.  Again  the  lever  was  moved  at  the  engine,  and 
the  steel  beam  soared  into  the  air  up  to  the  sixteenth  story, 
where  it  was  made  fast  by  little  bolts. 

The  entire  structure,  great  as  it  was,  towering  far  above 
all  the  neighboring  buildings,  was  made  up  of  pieces  of 
steel,  and  stone,  and  wood,  put  together  according  to  a 
plan.  The  plan  was  first  imagined,  then  penciled,  then 
carefully  drawn,  and  then  followed  by  the  workmen.  It 
was  all  a  combination  of  little  things. 

It  is  encouraging  to  think  of  this  when  you  are  con- 
fronted by  a  big  task.  Remember  that  it  is  only  a  group 
of  little  tasks,  any  one  of  which  you  can  easily  do.  It  is 
ignorance  of  this  fact  that  makes  some  men  afraid  to  try: 


3P 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

HIDDEN   STRENGTH 

It  is  a  great  day  in  a  man's  life  when  he  truly  begins  to 
discover  himself.  The  latent  capacities  of  every  man  are 
greater  than  he  realizes,  and  he  may  find  them  if  he  dili- 
gently seeks  for  them.  A  man  may  own  a  tract  of  land  for 
many  years  without  knowing  its  value.  He  may  think  of 
it  as  merely  a  pasture.  But  one  day  he  discovers  evidences 
of  coal  and  finds  a  rich  vein  beneath  his  land.  While 
mining  and  prospecting  for  coal  he  discovers  deposits  of 
granite.  In  boring  for  water  he  strikes  oil.  Later  he 
discovers  a  vein  of  copper  ore,  and, —  after  that,  silver 
and  gold.  These  things  were  there  all  the  time — even 
when  he  thought  of  his  land  merely  as  a  pasture.  But 
they  have  a  value  only  when  they  are  discovered  and  util- 
ized. 

Not  every  pasture  contains  deposits  of  silver  and  gold, 
neither  oil  nor  granite,  nor  even  coal.  But  beneath  the 
surface  of  every  man  there  must  be,  in  the  nature  of 
things,  a  latent  capacity  greater  than  has  yet  been  discov- 
ered. And  one  discovery  must  lead  to  another  until  the 
man  finds  the  deep  wealth  of  his  own  possibilities.  His- 
tory is  full  of  the  acts  of  men  who  discovered  somewhat  of 
their  own  capacity;  but  history  has  yet  to  record  the  man 
who  fully  discovered  all  that  he  might  have  been. 


31 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

BE   A   WHOLE   MAN 

That  some  men  rise  in  a  few  years  from  the  lowest  to 
the  highest  positions  is  always  a  matter  of  interest  and  en- 
couragement to  others.  One  man  I  recall  is  now  manager 
of  a  large  mercantile  concern,  employing  several  thousand 
persons.  Eight  years  ago  he  began  as  an  office  clerk  at 
ten  dollars  a  week.  He  was  unknown  to  the  proprietors, 
and  had  neither  friend  nor  relative  to  aid  his  advancement. 

After  making  due  allowances  for  favorable  circum- 
stances, the  fact  remains  that  he  was  able  to  fill  the  higher 
position.  So  we  must  conclude  that  it  was  not  circum- 
stances but  rather  some  quality  of  mind  that  made  him 
equal  to  the  opportunity.  He  doubtless  had  integrity, 
thoroughness  and  energy  —  and  he  must  also  have  had 
judgment,  adaptabihty  and  sincerity.  But  less  successful 
men  have  had  these.  One  thing  especially  he  had,  a  very 
essential  quality,  comprehensiveness.  He  had  the  ability 
to  grasp  the  whole  plan  and  purpose  of  the  business 
and  could  appreciate  the  relative  importance  of  the  various 
parts.  He  did  not  narrow  his  interests  and  sympathies 
down  to  a  mere  fragment,  but  endeavored  to  appreciate 
the  entire  business  as  one  great  composite  idea.  All  real 
progress  is  in  the  expansion  of  thought  —  that  measures 
the  difference  between  a  man  and  his  fellows. 


32 


THOl'GHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE    BEST   AS   A    STANDARD 

It  is  always  worth  while  to  know  what  the  best  looks 
like  —  whether  you  are  able  to  bring  your  own  production 
up  to  it  or  not. 

A  printer  began  to  show  a  marked  improvement  in 
the  quality  of  his  work,  and  one  of  his  customers  asked 
him  about  it. 

"I  was  in  the  office  of  one  of  my  customers  a  few  weeks 
ago,"  he  said,  "and  for  the  first  time  in  many  years  I  saw 
a  really  good  collection  of  fine  printing.  I  had  seen  occa- 
sional specimens  now  and  then,  but  nothing  especially 
fine,  and  along  with  it  I  had  seen  a  great  deal  of  common- 
place stuff,  so  I  might  say  I  didn't  really  know  what  the 
best  looked  Hke.  But  a  salesman  from  a  high-class  print- 
ing house  that  specializes  on  the  finest  grade  of  work  was 
there  with  a  splendid  portfoho  of  samples,  and  the  buyer 
asked  him  to  let  me  look  them  over.  That  lot  of  samples 
was  to  me  a  liberal  education  in  fine  printing.  It  changed 
my  ideas  completely.  I  felt  about  the  way  I  did  when  I 
first  came  from  a  country  village  to  a  big  city.  For  years 
I  had  had  a  sign  over  my  door,  'Fine  Job  Printing,'  but 
I  felt  heartily  ashamed  of  it  when  I  saw  it  again.  And  I 
made  up  my  mind  that  I  would  Hve  up  to  it  or  take  it 
down.  That  one  view  of  really  good  stuff  changed  my 
whole  standard." 


33 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

CONSIDER   THE   NEED 

The  logical  starting  point  of  successful  manufacture 
and  merchandising  is  to  discern  a  need  and  then  devise  a 
way  to  fill  it.  The  reverse  of  this  is  merely  to  make  some- 
thing you  happen  to  think  of  and  then  try  to  sell  it.  The 
merchant  who  carries  goods  that  nobody  wants,  and  fails 
to  supply  the  goods  that  are  in  demand,  will  soon  find  that 
he  must  change  his  methods  or  fail. 

It  is  said  that  the  United  States  imports  from  South 
America  nearly  twice  the  volume  of  merchandise  that 
it  exports  to  that  country.  The  chief  explanation  is  that 
they  sell  us  what  we  want,  and  we  try  to  sell  them  what 
they  don't  want.  Our  manufacturers  do  not  study  the 
needs  of  that  country,  but  offer  for  sale  the  goods  that  are 
made  for  the  home  market.  While  we  are  slowly  learning 
this  fact  the  manufacturers  of  Europe  are  reaping  a  rich 
harvest  because  they  make  for  export  the  very  things 
that  will  fit  into  South  American  needs. 

No  merchant  or  manufacturer  can  afford  to  overlook 
this  fundamental  point.  A  sympathetic  appreciation  of 
the  needs  of  others,  and  a  desire  to  fill  those  needs  in  a 
way  that  will  serve  the  best  interests  of  humanity  —  this  is 
the  true  basis  for  all  wholesome  business  activity.  Success 
gravitates  to  the  man  who  works  from  this  standpoint. 


34 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

LOOKING   AHEAD 

The  outlook  for  the  future  of  human  industry  is  in- 
spiring to  every  earnest  and  thoughtful  person.  The 
undeveloped  possibilities  of  nature  are  amazing.  MilHons 
of  acres  of  forests  and  fields,  mines  and  mountains  await  — 
not  merely  development,  but  even  the  practical  recognition 
of  their  actual  existence.  The  very  contemplation  of  the 
possibilities  of  industry  should  awaken  the  ambition  of 
every  sincere  man  —  an  ambition  to  take  some  effective 
part  in  making  available  to  all  humanity  the  necessities, 
the  utilities,  and  the  wholesome  accompaniments  of   hfe. 

How  shall  a  man  equip  himself  to  take  a  worthy  part 
in  the  work  of  development  which  the  coming  years  must 
surely  bring?  Milhons  ask  themselves  that  question  as 
they  realize  that  the  years  ahead  will  surely  require  of  them 
a  deeper  micasure  of  effective  activity  than  they  have  given 
thus  far.  And  they  are  answering  it  for  themselves  in 
their  present  efforts  for  self-improvement  —  by  acquiring 
sound  business  and  social  principles,  by  the  broadening  of 
their  sympathies,  the  breaking  of  unnecessary  limitations 
of  thought  and  action,  the  detection  and  correction  of 
erroneous  theories  and  actions,  the  perfection  of  skill,  the 
enlargement  of  their  purposes,  and  upHfting  of  thought, 
ideals,  hope,  energy  and  endeavor. 

The  best  is  yet  to  be !  Are  you  increasing  your  ability 
to  appreciate  it  and  take  part  in  it,  or  are  you  merely 
passing  your  time  away? 


35 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

IDEAS 

Who  can  measure  the  value  of  an  idea?  Starting  as 
the  bud  of  an  acorn  it  becomes  at  last  a  forest  of  mighty 
oaks;  or  beginning  as  a  spark  it  consumes  the  rubbish  of 
centuries. 

Ideas  are  as  essential  to  progress  as  a  hub  to  a  wheel, 
for  they  form  the  center  around  which  all  things  revolve. 
Ideas  begin  great  enterprises,  and  the  workers  of  all  lands 
do  their  bidding.  Ideas  govern  the  governors,  rule  the 
rulers,  and  manage  the  managers  of  all  nations  and  indus- 
tries. Ideas  are  the  motive  power  which  turn  the  tireless 
wheels  of  toil.  Ideas  raise  the  plow-boy  to  president,  and 
constitute  the  primal  element  of  the  success  of  men  and 
nations.  Ideas  form  the  fire  that  lights  the  torch  of  prog- 
ress, leading  on  the  centuries.  Ideas  are  the  keys  which 
open  the  storehouses  of  possibility.  Ideas  are  the  pass- 
ports to  the  realms  of  great  achievement.  Ideas  are  the 
touch-buttons  which  connect  the  currents  of  energy  with 
the  wheels  of  history.  Ideas  determine  the  bounds,  break 
the  limits,  move  on  the  goal,  and  waken  latent  capacity 
to  successive  sunrises  of  better  days. 


36 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

PIONEER   WORK 

The  most  far-reaching  work  is  that  of  the  pioneer. 
The  voyage  of  Columbus  cost  seven  thousand  dollars  — 
but  the  history  of  coming  centuries  will  continue  to  record 
the  results  of  that  experiment. 

Many  men  would  have  been  willing  to  endure  the  hard- 
ships and  chains  of  Columbus  to  have  performed  so  great 
a  service  to  mankind  —  if  they  had  known  beforehand 
what  the  outcome  would  be.  But  Columbus  and  his 
supporters  had  no  adequate  conception  of  the  possibiHties 
of  that  service.  Some  things  have  to  be  undertaken  on 
faith.  Many  a  trackless  ocean  has  to  be  crossed  in  fol- 
lowing the  lead  of  our  convictions.  Every  new  continent 
lies  overseas. 

There  are  many  new  worlds  yet  to  be  discovered. 
Printing,  steam,  electricity,  telegraphy,  photography,  the 
phonograph,  and  wireless  telegraphy  have  each  opened 
new  worlds.  But  these  are  merely  hints  of  the  discoveries 
yet  to  be  made. 

Who  will  discover  the  new  things?  The  man  who 
looks  beneath  the  surface,  who  is  willing  to  endure  some- 
thing for  the  common  good,  who  follows  ideas,  grasps 
essentials,  analyzes  causes;  who  undertakes  anew  where 
hundreds  have  failed,  who  peers  over  precedents,  considers 
fundamentals,  tries  experiments,  proceeds  from  principles, 
and  is  urged  on  by  an  earnest  purpose. 


37 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

OPPORTUNITIES   THAT   WAIT 

Napoleon  could  have  had  an  automobile.  The  prin- 
ciples upon  which  it  is  constructed  have  always  existed. 
If  men  had  known  enough  to  apply  those  principles  then, 
the  best  type  of  modern  car  might  have  glided  down  the 
streets  of  Paris  a  century  ago.  Hot  water  made  steam 
back  in  the  Carboniferous  Age.  Plato  might  have  had  a 
telephone,  Alexander  a  phonograph,  Cleopatra  a  steam 
yacht,  and  the  speeches  of  Cicero  might  have  been  printed 
in  a  daily  paper,  if  men  had  known  enough. 

During  the  coming  centuries  many  inventions  will  be 
made  —  but  the  principles  upon  which  they  are  to  be  con- 
structed are  in  existence  right  now,  awaiting  perception 
and  apphcation.  And  every  improvement  that  will  be 
made  in  every  line  of  work  —  art,  manufacture,  commerce, 
agriculture,  physics,  and  metaphysics  —  will  merely  be 
the  discovery  and  unfoldment  of  facts  that  exist  now. 

In  the  years  that  are  before  us  we  shall  all  doubtless 
make  significant  progress.  Each  step  will  come  as  soon 
as  we  really  think  of  it  —  as  soon  as  we  really  see  the  next 
thing  to  do  and  do  it.  The  opportunity  to  perceive  the 
next  step  is  always  open  —  always  waiting  to  be  utilized. 


38 


T  H   O   I'   G   H  T   S        OX        BUSINESS 

\\^ERE   THE   TROUBLE   LIES 

Hard  problems  often  have  an  easy  solution  when 
you  know  just  where  the  trouble  lies.  One  cold  winter 
morning  I  was  passing  a  grocery  store  and  saw  a  number 
of  people  waiting  to  get  in.  The  man  was  there  to  open 
the  door,  but  the  key  wouldn't  work.  With  the  help  of  a 
policeman  and  one  or  two  of  the  other  men  he  was  trying 
to  force  the  lock.  I  joined  the  crowd  for  a  few  moments. 
One  man  asked  to  see  the  key.  He  reasoned  that  if  the 
key  had  always  worked  before  it  should  work  now  unless 
there  was  something  wrong  with  it.  Looking  down  the 
little  hole  in  the  end  he  found  a  small  pebble,  which  kept 
the  key  from  going  all  the  way  in.  Picking  out  the  pebble 
he  put  the  key  in  the  lock,  and  opened  the  door  readily. 

I  have  often  thought  of  this  experience  when  con- 
fronted by  perplexing  problems.  And  many  a  time  I 
have  found  that  what  at  first  seemed  a  difficult  problem 
was  instantly  solved  —  when  I  found  the  pebble  in  the 
key. 

Somewhere,  in  every  problem,  there  is  a  place  where 
the  trouble  lies.  We  do  not  make  any  progress  until  we 
find  that  spot  and  remove  the  obstruction.  All  other 
effort  is  wasted.  We  gain  nothing  by  trying  to  force  the 
lock.     The  thing  to  do  is  to  find  the  pebble  in  the  key. 


39 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   LEVER   PRINCIPLE 

Your  ability  to  move  things  depends  largely  on  where 
you  take  hold.  I  shall  never  forget  the  first  time  I  saw  the 
great  Ferris  wheel  —  that  wonder  of  two  world's  fairs. 
What  impressed  me  most  was  not  its  magnitude,  but  the 
fact  that  in  spite  of  its  gigantic  size,  it  required  only  a  com- 
paratively small  engine  to  run  it.  For  unlike  most  wheels 
the  power  was  not  applied  at  the  center,  but  at  the  circum- 
ference, thus  utilizing  the  extraordinary  leverage  of  one 
hundred  and  eighty  feet.  The  same  force,  if  exerted  at  the 
axle,  would  have  been  powerless  to  move  the  wheel  a  single 
inch. 

The  lever  principle  is  not  confined  to  mechanical 
things  —  it  is  one  of  the  great  fundamental  ideas  which 
humanity  has  discovered. 

When  the  progress  of  your  campaign  is  beset  with 
obstacles,  whether  ignorance,  prejudice,  injustice,  or  de- 
lay, remember  the  lever  principle.  Somewhere  there  is  a 
move  that  you  can  make  that  will  set  in  motion  a  chain  of 
events  that  will  eventually  move  even  the  greatest  obstacle. 
Don't  strain  at  the  hub  of  the  ponderous  wheel  —  move  a 
cog  that  fits  into  the  rim. 


40 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

LEARN  TO   ASK   QUESTIONS 

Here  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  things  you  will  ever 
learn:  You  can  save  yourself  years  of  effort  by  utiHzing 
the  knowledge  and  experience  of  others.  What  it  takes 
a  man  ten  years  to  learn  may  take  him  only  a  minute  to 
tell.  If  you  ask  him  a  question  that  will  draw  out  his 
convictions,  you  can  get  the  same  thought  you  would 
probably  reach  if  you  went  over  the  same  ground  he  did. 
You  can,  as  it  were,  begin  where  he  left  off. 

A  man  spent  thirty  years  perfecting  the  telephone,  but 
I  can  pick  it  up  and  use  it  in  an  instant.  If  I  had  to  invent 
one  myself  before  I  could  use  it,  I  would  lose  valuable  time 
doing  something  that  has  already  been  done. 

Don't  ask  stupid  or  impertinent  questions,  as  that 
would  cost  you  the  confidence  of  the  person  you  ask,  and 
shut  off  the  help  he  might  be  wiUing  to  render  you. 

The  questions  that  bring  out  the  most  information  are 
specific  questions,  thoughtfully  asked,  and  sometimes 
involving  fundamentals.  It  is  a  good  practice  to  try  the 
different  kinds  of  questions  until  you  learn  which  are  the 
best.  Always  remember  that  asking  intelligent  questions 
is  an  art  —  a  valuable  accomplishment. 


41 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

HOW   TO    ACQUIRE   TACT 

It  is  generally  conceded  that  tact  is  a  quality  which 
serves  us  well  at  all  times  and  under  all  circumstances. 
And  while  all  regard  it  as  a  thing  greatly  to  be  desired, 
many  fail  to  recognize  that  it  may  be  consciously  culti- 
vated. If  we  analyze  tact  we  find  that  it  is  made  up 
of  certain  elements: 

A  sympathetic  knowledge  of  human  nature,  its  fears, 
weaknesses,  expectations,  and  inclinations. 

The  ability  to  put  yourself  in  the  other  person's  place 
and  to  consider  the  matter  as  it  appears  to  him. 

The  magnanimity  to  deny  expression  to  such  of  your 
thoughts  as  might  unnecessarily  offend  another. 

The  ability  to  perceive  quickly  what  is  the  expedient 
thing,  and  the  willingness  to  make  the  necessary  conces- 
sions. 

The  recognition  that  there  are  miUions  of  different 
human  opinions  of  which  your  own  is  but  one. 

A  spirit  of  unfeigned  kindness  such  as  makes  even  an 
enemy  a  debtor  to  your  innate  good  will. 

A  patience  that  supplants  accusation  with  the  oppor- 
tunity for  self-discovery. 

A  recognition  of  what  is  customary  under  the  circum- 
stances and  a  gracious  acceptance  of  the  situation. 

Gentleness,  cheerfulness  and  sincerity  —  and  such 
variations  as  the  spirit  of  these  may  suggest. 


42 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


COURTESY:    A  BUSINESS  IDEAL 

There  have  been  thousands  of  essays  and  articles 
written  within  the  last  few  years  to  emphasize  the  impor- 
tance of  courtesy  in  the  business  life.  It  is  to  be  hoped 
that  there  will  be  thousands  more.  For  it  is  certain  that 
few  things  do  so  much  to  make  the  world  fit  to  live  in  as 
courtesy. 

Many  business  houses  pride  themselves  on  the  extent 
to  which  courtesy  is  manifested  by  their  employes,  both  in 
dealing  with  customers  and  with  each  other.  And  almost 
without  exception  these  firms  give  openly  to  their  employes 
the  thought  that  courtesy  pays  for  sound  business  reasons. 

There  may  be  those  who  look  askance  at  reforms  which 
seem  to  have  only  a  business  motive  behind  them.  But  I 
think  it  is  one  of  the  signs  of  the  times  that  business  men 
are  finding  that  the  common  moral  principles  of  life  are 
such  mighty  factors  in  business  success  that  they  are 
forced,  for  business  reasons,  to  encourage  such  reforms. 

There  is  an  ever  widening  educational  propaganda 
issued  by  business  houses  to  employes  —  because  it  pays. 
And  a  digest  of  a  volume  of  business-house  literature 
reveals  the  significant  fact  that  at  the  core  of  almost  every 
piece  of  instruction  is  to  be  found  some  restatement  of  the 
simplest  of  common  virtues.  Courtesy,  the  thousand- 
fold topic  of  business  doctrine,  is  but  another  name  for 
kindnesa. 


43 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


ARE   YOU   A    DIPLOMAT? 

The  diplomat  holds  a  high  place  in  business  affairs,  and 
it  is  well  to  understand  what  constitutes  diplomacy.  For, 
like  many  other  valuable  qualities,  it  may  be  acquired. 

Diplomacy  is  common  sense  reduced  to  a  fine  art.  A 
diplomat  is  a  man  who  throws  away  his  cigar  when  he 
visits  a  powder  magazine.  He  slows  up  as  he  turns  the 
corner.  He  speaks  cordially  to  the  strange  dog.  He 
walks  slowly  when  he  is  escorting  an  elderly  lady.  He 
speaks  concisely  when  he  is  talking  to  a  busy  man.  He 
never  whips  the  horse  pulling  steadily  up  hill.  He  does 
not  wear  his  vermilion  golf  jacket  when  he  visits  the  stock 
farm.  He  always  strokes  the  fur  the  right  way.  And  in 
dealing  with  human  nature  he  makes  allowances  for  con- 
ceit, arrogance,  and  reserve,  and  does  not  disturb  them 
when  this  would  only  defeat  a  nobler  purpose. 

Diplomacy  should  never  be  confused  with  mere  cun- 
ning, its  counterfeit.  It  is  one  thing  to  take  an  unfair 
advantage — another  to  make  use  of  the  advantage  already 
yours  —  the  advantage  of  discretion.  The  true  diplomat 
is  the  man  who  has  advanced  more  than  others  in  the 
gentle  art  of  getting  along  with  his  fellow  men. 


44 


SELF-IMPROVEMENT 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

APPRECIATE   YOUR   CAPACITY 

Much  of  the  strength  within  men  is  hidden,  awaiting 
an  occasion  to  reveal  it.  The  head  of  a  department  in  a 
great  manufacturing  concern  severed  his  connection  with 
the  firm,  his  work  falling  upon  a  young  man  of  twenty-five 
years.  The  young  man  rose  to  the  occasion,  and  in  a  very 
short  time  was  conceded  to  be  the  stronger  executive  of  the 
two.  He  had  been  with  the  concern  for  several  years,  and 
was  regarded  as  a  bright  fellow,  but  his  marked  success 
was  a  surprise  to  all  who  knew  him  —  even  to  himself. 

The  fact  is,  the  young  man  had  that  abihty  all  the  time 
and  didn't  know  it;  and  his  employers  didn't  know  it. 
He  might  have  been  doing  greater  things  all  along  if  there 
bad  been  the  occasion  to  reveal  his  strength. 

Do  you  employers  and  superior  oflEicers  in  business 
realize  how  much  of  this  hidden  strength  there  is  in  your 
men?  Perhaps  a  word  from  you,  giving  certain  men 
more  scope,  would  liberate  that  abihty  for  the  develop- 
ment of  both  your  business  and  your  men  ? 

Do  you  workers  know  your  own  strength?  Are  you 
working  up  to  your  capacity  ?  Or  are  you  accepting  the 
limits  which  the  circumstances  place  about  you  ? 


47 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

TIME   TO    THINK 

It  doesn't  pay  to  be  too  busy.  Unless  a  man  has  some 
time  to  think  in  a  natural  way  about  things  in  general  he 
loses  a  great  measure  of  mental  growth.  It  is  well  to  be 
active  —  a  wholesome  thing  for  every  faculty  of  the  mind. 
But  as  trees  and  flowers  need  both  periods  of  rain  and 
periods  of  sunshine,  so  men  need  to  be  sometimes  busy  and 
sometimes  able  to  stop  and  think.  Quiet  thought  is  re- 
freshing to  the  busy  man. 

A  great  many  men  in  business  do  not  at  all  appreciate 
this  fact  —  however  commonplace  it  may  seem.  They 
drive  themselves  or  let  themselves  be  driven  by  their  work 
all  day  long,  day  in  and  day  out,  year  in  and  year  out. 
What  time  they  have  away  from  their  work  is  often  spent 
in  an  endless  round  of  social  and  pleasurable  activities, 
leaving  practically  no  half  hour  without  its  impending 
purpose,  no  time  to  stop  and  think  and  set  their  minds  in 
order,  no  time  to  reflect  or  to  let  the  mind  act  from  impulses 
other  than  the  purposes  with  which  it  is  being  driven  con- 
tinuously. Such  a  man's  mind  gets  into  a  whirl,  revolving 
in  a  very  small  orbit  and  making  him  oblivious  to  greater 
themes  that  lie  wholly  outside  of  the  limited  circle  of  his 
own  strenuous  activity. 

On  a  strictly  business  basis,  this  does  not  pay.  It 
deprives  the  man  of  thoughts  and  ideas  that  might  open 
up  new  opportunities  of  immeasurable  value  to  his  work. 
Whatever  clogs  up  thinking  retards  progress. 


48 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

ARE   YOU   IN   A   TREADMILL? 

Is  the  work  you  are  doing  to-day  essential  to  your 
progress,  or  are  you  merely  keeping  at  it  and  passing  your 
time  away  ?  Are  you  getting  anywhere  ?  Are  you  gaining 
experience  that  will  be  of  value  to  you?  If  you  do  the 
same  work  for  another  year  will  you  be  any  better  off  than 
you  are  now  ? 

These  vital  questions  come  to  every  worker.  If  the 
answer  be  "No,"  then  what?  Are  you  doing  anything 
about  it?  Or  are  you  tramping  the  treadmill  without 
trying  to  get  out  ?  The  answer  to  these  questions  measures 
the  real  difference  between  the  progressive  and  the  unpro- 
gressive  man.  When  the  unprogressive  man  is  somewhat 
aroused  he  works  harder  —  but  in  the  treadmill.  When 
the  progressive  man  is  aroused  and  finds  himself  in  a 
treadmill  he  spends  his  first  efforts  to  get  out  —  and 
doesn't  stop  until  he  is  out. 

If  you  are  working  in  a  treadmill,  and  you  know  it  is  a 
treadmill,  and  that  you  could  do  better  work,  why  don't 
you  do  something  about  it?  Why  don't  you  make  some 
effort  to  get  out?  And  when  you  seek  advice,  don't  let 
some  easy-going  optimistic  friend  talk  you  into  a  false  hope 
about  the  treadmill.  Find  the  next  step  out  —  and  take 
it. 


49 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

CONTINUOUS   GROWTH   NECESSARY 

Are  you  growing  as  fast  as  your  business  is  growing  ? 
That  is  a  question  every  man  might  well  ask  himself. 
Unless  there  is  a  continual  growth  in  the  individual  there 
is  a  widening  of  the  distance  between  him  and  the  higher 
positions  to  which  he  aspires.  The  requirements  of  nearly 
all  high  positions  are  increasing.  It  takes  a  bigger  man  to 
be  foreman  or  manager  to-day  than  it  did  a  few  years 
ago. 

In  many  lines  of  business  it  is  not  uncommon  to  double 
the  business  of  the  previous  year,  while  an  increase  of 
from  twenty  to  fifty  per  cent  is  often  considered  a  normal 
growth. 

Are  you  growing  as  fast  as  your  business  is  growing  ? 
This  question  comes  home  with  especial  significance  to 
men  who  have  executive  work  of  any  kind.  The  foreman 
who  handled  ten  men  two  years  ago,  and  twenty  men  last 
year,  is  this  year  perhaps  required  to  handle  forty  men. 
He  must  be  able  to  do  it  if  he  is  to  keep  up  with  his  position. 
The  business  demands  the  forty  men  —  if  he  can't  handle 
them  another  must.  The  call  everywhere  is  for  men  who 
can  keep  up  with  the  rapid  pace  of  business  development. 


50 


THOUGHTS        ON       BUSINESS 


ABILITY   IS   CAPITAL 

A  GOOD  way  to  get  a  proper  view  of  a  salary  is  to  com- 
pare it  with  the  interest  on  money  invested.  If  the  average 
conservative  investment  be  at  5  per  cent,  then  a  man  whose 
personal  efforts  warrant  a  salary  of  $1,500  a  year  has  the 
same  income  he  would  have  if  he  had  $30,000  invested. 
If  he  gets  an  increase  of  S500  a  year  he  has  increased  his 
capital  ;^^  per  cent  and  draws  an  income  equal  to  an  in- 
vested capital  of  $40,000. 

AbiHty  without  money-capital  is  better  than  money 
without  abihty.  The  progressive  man  is  often  able  to 
increase  his  earning  capacity  more  than  the  man  of  money 
without  abihty  could  hope  to  increase  his  capital  in  the 
same  length  of  time.  If  a  man  getting  $30  a  week, 
improves  his  abihty  so  as  to  get  $40,  as  the  result  of  a  year's 
improvement,  he  has  made  a  hving  and  virtually  cleared 
$10,000  to  add  to  his  capital.  Some  business  enterprises 
with  $30,000  invested  would  be  considered  prosperous  if 
they  could  do  as  well. 

The  opportunity  for  self-improvement  is  in  some 
degree  open  to  every  man.  The  salaried  man  who  has 
big  ideas  as  to  what  he  would  do  if  he  were  at  the  head  of  a 
business  of  his  own  would  do  well  to  consider  his  abihty  as 
his  business,  with  a  capital  of  twenty  times  his  annual 
salary,  and  so  utilize  all  his  good  intentions  in  the  effort 
to  improve  his  talent  by  practicing  on  the  business  in  which 
he  is  now  engaged. 


51 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   RELIABLE   MAN 

There  is  always  room  for  the  man  who  can  be  relied 
upon.  "Why  do  you  look  outside  your  own  business  to 
find  a  man  for  that  place?"  asked  one  business  man  of 
another  who  had  stated  that  he  was  looking  for  a  man. 

"Well,  the  truth  is,"  rephed  the  other,  "the  kind  of 
man  I  want  isn't  to  be  found  among  our  700  employes.  I 
have  always  believed  in  promoting  our  own  men  when  we 
have  the  right  ones  to  promote.  But  I  want  a  man  who 
can  be  relied  upon.  I  can't  stand  over  that  work  all  the 
time  to  coach  some  fellow  who  may  be  able  to  do  the  detail 
if  I  will  do  the  thinking  for  him.  And  I  can't  afTord  to  put 
in  a  fairly  capable  man  who  is  likely  to  do  some  erratic 
thing  the  first  time  I  give  him  enough  leeway.  What  I 
need,  and  what  I  must  have,  is  a  man  who  can  take  that 
department  and  run  it  without  too  much  watching.  Of 
course  any  man  I  get  will  need  a  few  pointers  now  and 
then  while  he  is  getting  in  touch  with  our  way  of  doing 
business.  And  I  want  a  man  who  can  take  advice  when 
I  see  fit  to  give  it,  and  who  knows  enough  to  come  to  me 
for  advice  when  he  needs  it.  But  I  can't  afford  to  waste 
time,  money  and  business  opportunity  coaching  a  man  who 
can't  be  depended  upon.  I  want  some  one  I  can  lean  on, 
and  not  some  one  who  Vv^ill  lean  on  me.  Do  you  know 
where  I  can  find  such  a  man?" 

"Yes,"  replied  the  other,  "there  are  several  such  men 
around  town,  but  they  have  already  been  discovered,  and 
I  am  afraid  you  will  find  it  hard  to  get  one." 


52 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

ARE   YOU   WAITING   TO    BE   TOLD? 

A  FAULT  excused  to-day  will  go  unnoticed  to-morrow, 
and  an  outward  blemish  often  betrays  an  inward  careless- 
ness. One  day  a  merchant  was  passing  through  his  store 
and  noticed  some  badly  soiled  gum  tags  on  a  tableful  of 
china  plates.  He  asked  for  the  manager  of  the  department 
and  called  his  attention  to  the  tags. 

"Oh,  yes,"  said  the  man,  "I'll  change  them  right 
away." 

"But,"  said  the  merchant,  "that  is  not  the  point  at  all. 
A  boy  can  change  them  when  he  is  told.  What  bothers 
me  is  not  those  gum  tags,  but  the  fact  that  you  and  a  dozen 
other  people  in  this  department  have  seen  these  soiled  gum 
tags  every  day  for  weeks,  and  not  one  of  you  has  thought 
to  change  them.  And  if  you  let  things  go  which  are  so 
conspicuously  wrong,  what  assurance  have  I  that  you  are 
not  letting  a  hundred  other  things  go  at  loose  ends  which 
I  cannot  know  about  unless  I  come  in  here  and  do  your 
work  over  after  you  ?  I  don't  pay  you  a  salary  to  change 
gum  tags  when  some  one  else  tells  you,  but  to  know  when 
the  gum  tags  ought  to  be  changed,  and  to  teach  your 
assistants  to  know  when  they  ought  to  be  changed,  and  to 
change  them  without  being  told  even  by  you." 

Are  you  waiting  to  be  told  to  do  the  duty  that  stands 
plainly  before  your  eyes  ? 


53 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

LEARN   WHILE   YOU   CAN 

Knowledge  and  skill  are  always  wise  investments. 
One  of  the  most  foolish  notions  young  men  sometimes  get 
is  that  accomplishments  for  which  they  have  no  present 
need  are  of  no  value  to  them.  I  know  a  young  man  who 
had  a  most  excellent  opportunity  to  learn  to  use  the  type- 
writer. His  work  didn't  require  the  knowledge  and  he  let 
the  opportunity  pass  —  even  though  urged  to  spend  his 
unoccupied  time  in  the  ofhce  in  practicing.  Later  he 
came  to  a  place  where  that  knowledge  would  have  given 
him  a  desirable  promotion,  but  he  had  to  see  the  work  go 
to  another. 

The  progressive  man  is  always  seeking  to  equip  him- 
self for  higher  work  —  even  though  the  opportunity  to  use 
the  knowledge  is  not  apparent  at  the  time. 

Few  investments  are  so  sure  and  profitable  as  the  effort 
to  equip  oneself  in  the  four  fundamental  accomplishments: 

(i)  How  to  think  accurately  and  comprehensively, 

(2)  How  to  express  thought  in  talking  and  writing, 

(3)  How  to  work  skillfully  with  the  hands, 

(4)  How  to  take  one's  place  among  men. 

Out  of  these  accomplishments  grow  the  highest  forms 
of  human  activity  —  commerce,  manufacture,  art;  exec- 
utive ability,  productive  power,  salesmanship;  literature, 
music,  drama;  reputation,  skill,  and  character. 


54 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

GET   A    BROAD   VIEW 

A  KNOWLEDGE  of  the  wholc  plan  enables  one  to  handle 
a  part  more  intelligently.  In  a  great  mail  order  estab- 
lishment every  new  employe  is  allowed  from  one  to  three 
weeks  to  get  acquainted  with  the  entire  system  of  han- 
dling orders  —  from  the  time  the  letter  is  received  until  the 
goods  are  packed  and  loaded  into  the  freight  cars.  No 
matter  what  line  of  work  a  new  employe  is  to  be  engaged 
in,  it  is  considered  important  for  him  to  know  the  whole 
process  of  the  business. 

Many  workers  are  content  to  know  merely  their  own 
part  of  the  work,  and  never  give  a  thought  to  know  what 
is  going  on  in  other  departments  of  the  same  business. 
This  necessarily  limits  their  range  of  view  and  makes 
them  in  some  degree  less  valuable.  It  is  this  very  attitude 
that  often  keeps  men  doing  one  thing  all  their  lives. 

The  right  spirit  is  that  shown  by  the  man  who  wants  to 
know  all  he  can  about  all  parts  of  the  business  as  well  as 
all  about  his  own  work.  To  have  some  conception  of  the 
business  as  a  whole  enables  a  man  to  work  in  harmony 
with  the  purposes  of  his  employer,  and  to  carry  out  the 
spirit  as  well  as  the  letter  of  his  instructions.  This  must 
eventually  tell  in  the  quality  of  the  man's  work,  and  so 
afifect  his  standing  and  progress. 


S5 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

FROM   ACORN   TO    OAK 

Some  of  the  greatest  business  enterprises  have  grown 
out  of  very  simple  ideas.  In  many  such  cases  the  secret 
of  success  is  merely  in  doing  an  old  thing  in  a  new  way. 

Many  years  ago  a  man  got  the  idea  of  selling  goods  to 
merchants  in  assortments  instead  of  leaving  it  to  the  mer- 
chants to  pick  out  each  individual  item  of  their  stock.  He 
began  by  selling  twenty-dollar  assortments  of  notions. 
The  idea  appealed  to  the  merchants,  and  the  business 
prospered,  until  to-day  it  has  surpassed  the  most  extrava- 
gant dreams  of  its  founder. 

Another  idea  that  grew  out  of  this  one  has  also  gained 
extraordinary  dimensions.  The  success  of  the  "5  and  10 
cent  counters"  gave  another  man  the  idea  of  the  "5  and 
10  cent  stores,"  and  that  idea  grew  until  he  possessed  a 
chain  of  hundreds  of  such  stores  all  over  the  country. 

Another  idea  that  began  in  a  small  way  and  has  reached 
vast  proportions  in  various  lines  of  trade  is  the  factory  that 
sells  directly  to  the  consumer. 

It  is  hardly  possible  that  all  the  big  fundamental  ideas 
of  this  kind  have  been  thought  of  at  this  time.  Successes 
just  as  great  are  doubtless  waiting  for  men  who  can  think 
of  other  ideas  —  ideas  that  will  serve  a  widespread  need. 


$6 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

STUDY   FOR   THE    PLACE   AHEAD 

An  hour  a  day  spent  in  study  will  do  wonders  for 
almost  any  man.  After  a  man  has  worked  hard  all  day 
he  may  not  feel  like  studying.  The  natural  tendency  is 
towards  complete  relaxation,  and  it  is  not  to  be  denied 
that  a  certain  amount  of  relaxation  has  its  distinctive 
value.  But  it  is  also  certain  that  most  men  waste  some 
time  every  day  —  a  few  hours  a  week  at  least,  which  if 
spent  in  the  right  kind  of  study  would  equip  them  to  greatly 
increase  their  earning  capacity,  and  perhaps  attain  a 
position  where  life  has  more  opportunities  and  larger 
compensations. 

I  heard  of  a  man  who  advanced  himself  from  $35  a 
month  to  $125  a  month  in  two  years'  time  by  studying  a 
correspondence  course  in  certain  technical  branches  when 
his  day's  work  was  done.  Another  young  man  is  draw- 
ing five  times  as  much  salary  as  he  did  two  years  ago, 
because  he  spent  part  of  his  evenings  studying  draftsman- 
ship. A  successful  architect  gained  his  start  by  studying 
in  his  spare  time  while  he  was  serving  a  term  at  hard  labor 
in  the  penitentiary. 

For  men  employed  at  certain  kinds  of  workahttledaily 
study  is  a  pleasant  recreation.  It  is  often  more  restful 
than  many  other  pastimes.  Studying  to  equip  oneself  for 
a  higher  position  ought  to  be  a  refreshing  diversion  for 
any  man.  It  is  the  chief  avenue  of  escape  from  a  non- 
progressive and  unsatisfactory  life.  •  ••• 


57 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


A   GREAT   ART 

The  art  of  talking  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  equip- 
ments a  business  man  can  have.  Nearly  all  work  that  is 
above  mere  routine  and  physical  labor  involves  talking, 
and  the  success  of  the  work  often  depends  on  the  ability 
to  carry  the  point  in  conversation.  The  difference  be- 
tween a  skilled  and  unskilled  talker  is  very  great.  The 
importance  of  knowing  how  to  talk  well  is  not  generally 
appreciated.  Many  who  think  they  are  proficient  in  the 
art  are  as  self-deceived  as  the  novice  in  poetry  writing.  A 
really  skillful  talker  is  rare,  because  little  or  no  systematic 
attention  is  paid  to  cultivating  the  art.  Instead  of  being 
allowed  to  develop  in  a  haphazard  manner,  picking  up  a 
point  here  and  another  there,  talking  should  be  the  sub- 
ject of  study  almost  as  thoroughly  as  that  given  to  paint- 
ing, writing,  or  music. 

A  man  may  have  good  ideas,  but  if  he  does  not  know 
how  to  present  them  intelligently  they  may  never  attain 
proper  recognition.  If  a  man  would  acquire  information 
from  others  he  must  know  how  to  draw  them  out.  The 
difference  between  a  good  salesman  and  a  poor  one  is  often 
a  matter  of  knowing  how  to  talk.  And  the  manager  who 
gets  the  most  out  of  his  men  is  the  one  who  knows  how  to 
talk  to  them  in  a  manner  that  will  stir  their  enthusiasm, 
quickening  and  encouraging  them  to  put  forth  their  best 
efforts.  At  every  turn  the  art  of  talking  is  a  vital  factor 
in  success. 


58 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   MEN    OF   TO-MORROW 

Lack  of  success  is  largely  the  fruit  of  wasted  oppor- 
tunity. The  men  who  will  be  most  actively  engaged  in 
business  affairs  a  few  years  hence  are  to-day  going  to 
school.  The  average  young  man  in  school  does  not  in  any 
practical  degree  appreciate  what  the  business  world  will 
require  of  him.  For  lack  of  that  knowledge  many  young 
men  now  in  school  are  wasting  opportunities  as  recklessly 
as  the  man  of  sudden  wealth  who  lights  a  cigar  with  a 
twenty  dollar  bill.  Opportunities  that  in  a  few  years 
money  cannot  buy  are  daily  and  hourly  thrown  away  by 
young  men  with  a  prodigality  that  saddens  every  business 
man  who  has  come  to  realize  what  such  opportunities 
would  have  meant  to  himself  and  others. 

A  milHon  unsuccessful  men  in  business  life  call  out  in 
admonition  to  the  young  man  who  is  not  making  the  most 
of  his  opportunities  to-day.  A  miUion  homes  of  want  and 
vain  regret  cry  out  to  the  teachers  in  schools  and  colleges, 
beseeching  them  to  labor  assiduously  to  imbue  their  pupils 
with  right  ideas  of  work,  education,  and  purpose.  But 
louder  still  is  the  cry  that  goes  out  to  parents,  whose  chil- 
dren are  to  enter  the  arena  of  the  world's  activity,  implor- 
ing them  to  labor  systematically  and  patiently,  to  teach 
their  boys  and  girls  to  love  work  for  work's  sake,  and  to 
love  knowledge  for  the  good  it  can  bring  —  and  to  use 
every  opportunity  to  the  utmost. 


5<3 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

NOT   COUNTING   THE   TIME 

I  WAS  looking  at  a  beautiful  cloisonne  vase  in  an  art 
ware  store,  examining  its  intricate  workmanship,  and  mar- 
veling at  its  price  —  only  two  dollars  for  a  splendid  piece 
of  work  that  must  have  taken  a  skilled  craftsman  many 
days  to  produce. 

"How  is  it  possible  to  make  such  a  thing  for  that 
price?"  I  asked  the  salesman. 

"Those  Japanese,"  he  explained,  "don't  count  their 
time  as  a  part  of  the  cost;  they  are  satisfied  to  make  a 
little  profit  on  the  materials  they  use." 

I  couldn't  help  thinking  that  there  are  many  others 
who  do  not  count  their  time  as  part  of  the  cost.  Almost 
everybody  wastes  time  —  and  without  having  anything 
useful  or  beautiful  to  show  for  it.  Even  many  busy  men 
waste  time.  And  if  they  do  it,  what  shall  we  say  of  those 
who  are  less  busy;  and  what,  indeed,  of  those  who  are  not 
busy  at  all? 

Did  you  ever  try  saying  to  yourself,  "  My  time  is  worth 
a  dollar  an  hour.  Would  I  pay  a  dollar  an  hour  for  this 
puttering?"  That 's  a  fair  test.  Every  hour  of  your  time 
is  a  portion  of  your  life's  opportunity,  and  should  be  worth 
something  to  you  and  others. 


60 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

"I    SEEN" 

Thousands  of  men  are  classed  below  their  natural 
level  because  they  use  poor  grammar.  Two  business  men 
were  discussing  the  proposed  promotion  of  a  young  man. 
The  senior  partner  said:  "We  can't  trust  him  to  meet  our 
customers.  He  always  says  'I  seen.'  "  And  the  young 
man  did  not  get  the  appointment. 

Many  a  man  has  been  shut  off  from  the  society  of  those 
who  might  help  him,  solely  because  his  careless  habits  of 
speech  offended  their  more  refined  sensibilities.  Whether 
this  attitude  on  their  part  is  right  or  not,  does  not  alter  the 
fact  that  such  is  the  tendency,  and  this  shows  how  the  ques- 
tion of  correct  speech  may  be  a  factor  in  a  person's  career. 

The  habit  of  speaking  incorrectly  is  not  easily  over- 
come, but  no  one,  no  matter  at  what  age  in  life,  should 
rest  content  until  he  has  overcome  it.  But  first  of  all 
must  be  rooted  out  the  chief  obstacle  to  progress,  the  ig- 
norant and  self -justifying  behef  that  it  really  makes  no 
difference  how  you  speak  if  people  understand  you.  On 
this  little  rock  there  has  been  many  a  shipwreck,  both  in 
social  and  in  business  life. 

There  are  thousands  of  boys  growing  up  in  offices  and 
other  departments  of  business  who  are  bright  and  ener- 
getic and  give  promise  of  successful  careers  —  but  they 
use  bad  grammar,  and  are  fastening  the  habit  upon  them- 
selves as  they  grow  older.  What  a  blessing  it  would  be  to 
those  boys  if  the  educated  men  and  women  around  them 
would  encourage  them  to  study  and  use  the  correct  forms 

of  expression!     It  would  tell  mightily  on  their  careers. 

6i 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   WORD   TO    THE    WISE 

Many  a  young  man  loses  an  opportunity  by  not  heed- 
ing the  casual  recommendations  of  his  employer.  There 
are  a  good  many  things  an  employer  can  recommend,  but 
does  not  feel  in  a  position  to  require.  These  suggestions 
for  the  good  of  the  employe  are  often  given  very  simply, 
but  are  none  the  less  valuable.  They  are  often  the  fruit 
of  wide  experience,  and  are  merely  a  sample  of  w^hat  the 
employer  would  like  to  do  in  that  way  if  his  suggestions 
were  properly  received. 

A  manager  said  to  me,  "I  was  greatly  surprised  re- 
cently. I  started  a  young  man  in  my  office,  and  as  he 
seemed  open-minded  and  anxious  to  learn  I  took  the 
trouble  to  tell  him  a  few  things  for  his  own  good.  One 
thing  I  suggested  was  that  he  read  '  Calumet  K,'  and  an- 
other was  that  he  watch  his  chance  and  practice  on  the 
typewriter.  During  his  extra  time  at  noon  on  the  first  day 
I  saw  him  busy  at  the  typewriter,  and  the  next  day  he  came 
in  with  the  book  under  his  arm." 

"And  what  was  the  surprise?" 

"That  he  actually  did  what  I  suggested.  So  many 
young  men  will  do  what  they  are  ordered  to  do,  but  if  you 
give  them  a  mere  suggestion  they  will  pay  no  attention  to 
it.  I  hardly  expected  him  to  do  anything  about  either  of 
the  things  I  mentioned,  because  I  have  had  lots  of  expe- 
rience with  young  men.  But  it  is  encouraging  once  in  a 
while  to  find  an  exception  to  the  rule." 


62 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

LEARN   TO   BE  THOROUGH 

One  of  the  universal  faults  is  a  lack  of  thoroughness. 
From  the  boy  who  copies  his  arithmetic  lesson  from  a 
'schoolmate's  paper  to  the  old  man  who  leaves  ambiguities 
in  his  will  for  the  heirs  to  quibble  over,  there  is  a  lack  of 
thoroughness  in  nearly  every  human  transaction.  The 
unwritten  motto  of  the  average  person  is,  "To  seem  and 
not  to  be."  Most  people  are  willing  to  let  well  enough 
alone  —  and  they  have  a  modest  standard  of  what  con- 
stitutes "well  enough." 

It  is  because  of  the  wide  prevalence  of  this  fault  that  the 
really  thorough  man  both  does  and  does  not  get  the  credit 
that  is  due  him.  He  usually  does  not  get  it  when  his  work 
is  superficially  judged  by  those  who  are  themselves  not 
thorough.  But  he  does  get  it  when  his  work  is  put  to  the 
test  or  is  fairly  compared.  And,  best  of  all,  he  has  the 
satisfaction  of  knowing  for  himself  that  he  has  done  his 
duty,  and  therefore  has  gained  a  point  of  self-discipline 
which  he  can  never  really  lose. 

The  man  who  aspires  to  rise  above  the  average  in  any 
line  of  endeavor  should  ponder  well  this  point :  The  aver- 
age person  is  not  thorough,  and  therefore  even  a  little 
thoroughness  will  surpass  him.  This  should  inspire  the 
ambitious  man  to  be  thorough.  And  he  will  soon  find  that 
thoroughness  practically  measures  the  difference  between 
the  average  and  the  highly  successful  man. 


63 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

PRACTICE-WORK 

I  WAS  talking  with  a  business  man  about  the  success 
of  a  well-known  manufacturer  —  now  many  times  a  mil- 
lionaire. 

"I  knew  him  when  he  was  a  boy,"  said  the  man. 
"The  first  thing  I  can  remember  was  that  he  beat  me  at  a 
game  of  checkers.  We  played  four  games  and  he  beat 
me  every  time.  I  remember  it  well.  But  he  was  that 
way  about  everything.  He  was  the  best  ball  player,  the 
best  skater,  the  best  tennis  player  —  the  best  in  every- 
thing he  went  into.  In  school  it  was  the  same  way.  I 
remember  one  time  he  got  only  third  place  in  the  Latin 
class.  He  made  capital  out  of  the  fact,  though,  for  he 
went  at  that  Latin  as  if  his  hfe  depended  on  it,  and  that 's 
about  the  last  time  I  ever  heard  of  anybody  getting  ahead 
of  him.  After  he  got  in  business  it  was  the  same  way. 
Nobody  ever  accused  him  of  doing  things  by  halves.  It 's 
no  wonder  to  me  that  he  got  rich,  and  I  believe  he  earned 
every  dollar  of  his  money  by  doing  everything  a  little  bit 
better  than  the  next  person." 

Everything  we  do  is  merely  practice-work  for  some- 
thing greater,  and  we  grow  in  capacity  in  the  proportion 
that  we  throw  our  best  efforts  into  whatever  we  undertake. 


64 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

WORKING  FOR  YOURSELF 

It  is  always  a  helpful  thought  for  an  employe  to  go 
about  his  work,  not  with  the  thought  that  he  is  working 
solely  for  his  employer,  but  that  he  is  really  working  for 
himself. 

"I  always  tell  an  employe,"  said  a  merchant,  "that  he 
is  working  for  himself  just  as  much  as  if  his  name  were 
over  the  door.  We  furnish  him  capital,  space  to  work  in, 
and  give  him  the  benefit  of  our  systems  of  handling  mer- 
chandise, and  all  that,  but  what  he  does  is  in  a  sense  his 
own  business.  If  he  sells  goods,  or  packs  them  for  ship- 
ment, or  makes  out  bills,  whatever  he  does  contributes 
toward  a  portion  of  the  net  receipts  of  the  store.  He  is 
entitled  to  what  he  actually  earns,  minus  what  he  pays 
for  rent,  capital  and  other  accessories.  If  he  does  well  his 
business  will  grow  and  he  will  get  the  benefit  of  it.  And 
if  he  does  not  do  well  he  will  make  a  failure  of  his  busi- 
ness —  just  as  if  he  were  closed  up  by  his  creditors.  We 
can't  give  him  room  if  he  won't  pay  his  rent,  or  pay  inter- 
est on  the  capital  we  lend  him,  and  so  he  has  to  go  out  of 
business.  In  many  ways  he  is  virtually  in  business  for 
himself,  and  will  stand  or  fall  on  his  own  efforts." 

If  this  idea  were  more  thoroughly  understood  by  em- 
ployes everywhere  it  would  do  away  with  a  great  deal  of 
the  desire  to  shirk  and  pretend,  and  would  inspire  each 
one  to  put  forth  his  best  efforts. 


65 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

HEADED  FOR  THE  TOP 

Resourcefulness  is  the  star  accomplishment.  It  is 
the  master-key  that  fits  all  the  locks  of  business  require- 
ments. 

I  recently  heard  a  good  story  about  an  office  boy — may 
his  tribe  increase!  He  took  the  "message  to  Garcia" 
and  got  it  there  on  time. 

The  boy  was  given  a  letter  to  be  dehvered  to  a  man  at 
his  home  that  evening,  and  was  told  that  it  was  very  im- 
portant that  the  man  should  have  the  letter  before  8 
o'clock.  When  he  got  there  "Garcia"  had  gone  out,  his 
family  did  not  know  where.  The  boy  asked  where  he 
might  possibly  be  and  they  couldn't  even  guess.  Then 
he  asked  for  the  names  of  two  or  three  of  the  man's  most 
intimate  friends.  When  these  were  given  he  made  haste 
to  the  nearest  telephone  and  explained  the  situation  to  one 
or  two  of  the  friends  and  got  them  to  guess  where  he  was. 
Then  he  telephoned  to  one  of  the  guesses  and  found  that 
Garcia  had  just  been  there  but  had  gone  out  with  the  man 
of  the  house,  and  his  family  didn't  know  where.  But 
they  made  a  good  guess,  which  proved  true.  The  boy 
got  Garcia  on  the  telephone  at  a  clubhouse  two  miles 
away  and  explained  that  it  was  now  five  minutes  to  8, 
and  asked  permission  to  tear  open  the  letter  and  read  it  to 
him.  This  the  man  agreed  to,  and  received  the  informa- 
tion just  in  time  to  enable  him  to  be  present  at  an  impor- 
tant meeting. 


66 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   RIGHT  TRACK 

Many  persons  are  trying  hard  to  do  work  they  are  not 
"cut  out  for,"  while  perhaps  a  greater  measure  of  suc- 
cess awaits  them  in  some  more  congenial  line. 

A  young  man  was  working  in  the  stock  room  of  an 
electrical  supply  house  at  a  salary  of  eight  dollars  a  week. 
He  seemed  energetic  and  in  earnest,  but  out  of  place,  and 
was  dismissed.  Three  months  later,  after  another  change 
or  two,  he  was  employed  as  an  artist  on  certain  kinds  of 
commercial  work,  at  three  times  his  former  salary.  With- 
in a  year  he  was  making  good  progress  in  his  work  and 
receiving  forty  dollars  a  week. 

I  often  wonder  how  many  undiscovered  artists  there 
are  working  in  stock  rooms  —  and  how  many  good  stock 
keepers  there  are  struggling  with  art. 

Too  little  attention  is  paid  to  iinding  just  the  right 
work.  Young  men  often  start  in  a  business  because  a 
friend  works  there,  or  because  a  relative  offers  a  position. 
They  are  often  advised  to  take  the  first  position  they  can 
find  and  work  up. 

WTiile  a  certain  variation  of  experience  often  fits  a 
man  peculiarly  for  a  later  work,  it  is  usually  desirable  that 
he  should  seek  as  directly  as  possible  for  the  one  line  in 
which  he  is  most  Hkely  to  make  a  success. 

Are  you  really  suited  to  the  work  you  are  in?  Ask 
yourself  that  question. 


67 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

PICKING  THE  WAY 

Lack  of  experience  should  not  deter  a  man  from  under- 
taking new  work  if  he  is  reasonably  sure  of  himself  and 
has  plenty  of  initiative  and  adaptability.  I  know  a  young 
man  who  made  a  success  keeping  books,  although  he  took 
charge  of  the  work  when  he  had  no  experience  whatever. 
He  asked  questions  until  he  got  a  good  general  idea  of  the 
work.  Then  he  worked  along  cautiously  until  he  came 
to  something  he  did  not  understand,  when  he  went  again 
for  advice.  By  taking  no  step  without  first  making  sure 
it  was  the  right  one,  he  made  no  serious  blunders,  and 
soon  became  competent  to  carry  on  the  work  alone. 

Some  men,  finding  themselves  engaged  in  work  that 
promises  no  future,  desire  a  change,  but  are  afraid  to  un- 
dertake a  new  line  in  which  they  have  had  no  experience, 
clinging  rather  to  the  lines  they  are  familiar  with.  It  is, 
of  course,  unwise  to  get  into  deep  water  until  you  know 
how  to  swim.  But  the  facts  are  that  the  fear  to  under- 
take new  work  is  often  groundless,  for  the  simple  reason 
that  all  work,  except  that  requiring  technical  knowledge, 
is  pretty  much  the  same  everywhere  —  that  is,  a  man  can 
usually  find  out  what  there  is  to  do,  how  it  should  be  done, 
and  then  do  it.  The  work  that  looks  hard  when  it  is  un- 
familiar is  often  seen  to  be  very  easy  when  you  know  how. 

Where  a  foundation  of  technical  training  is  requisite, 

ft  is  seldom  easy  to  work  into  a  new  line  successfully.    The 

chemist's  assistant  who  has  not  studied  chemistry  finds  a 

gulf  he  cannot  cross.     But  with  books  and  tutors  even 

technical  training  has  been  acquired  in  that  way. 

68 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

UNFOLDING  A  TASK 

Most  questions  settle  themselves  when  you  have  all 
the  necessary  information  at  hand,  and  by  attaining  one 
"step  the  next  becomes  plain.  Many  persons  fear  to  un- 
dertake projects  which  they  might  easily  perform,  simply 
because  they  cannot  see  the  end  from  the  beginning,  and 
are  not  willing  to  work  their  way  along. 

The  fact  is,  most  of  the  great  works  in  the  world  have 
been  undertaken  by  men  who  did  not  pretend  to  be  able 
to  see  the  end  from  the  beginning;  but  they  did  know 
that  questions  which  look  perplexing  at  a  distance  become 
clearer  when  you  get  up  to  them. 

Suppose  a  man  is  to  erect  a  great  office  building.  The 
size  of  his  lot  determines  that  he  shall  not  build  larger 
than  a  certain  space.  The  value  of  the  land  determines 
that  none  of  it  shall  go  to  waste.  The  purpose  of  the 
building  helps  to  determine  the  height.  The  number  of 
steel  beams  is  fixed  by  the  dimensions  already  established 
—  across  the  side  nine  would  not  be  enough,  eleven  would 
be  too  many,  leaving  ten  as  the  logical  number.  The 
price  of  materials  and  the  money  the  man  is  willing  to 
spend  determine  whether  it  will  be  brick,  terra-cotta,  or 
granite.  The  purpose  of  the  building  will  decide  many 
minor  features,  such  as  entrances,  stairways  and  win- 
dows. At  every  point  the  question  to  decide  usually  set- 
tles itself  when  all  the  facts  are  considered.  Perceiving 
this  principle  of  unfoldment  ought  to  encourage  the  fear- 
ful to  undertake  any  reasonable  work  without  fear. 

69 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THROUGH   OTHER   EYES 

The  man  who  is  willing  to  be  told  comes  nearest  seeing 
himself  as  others  see  him.  If  a  man  steps  up  to  you  and 
says,  "Beg  pardon,  but  there  's  some  dust  on  your  coat," 
you  instinctively  turn  and  say,  "Thank  you,  sir."  But, 
if,  in  the  same  spirit  of  helpfulness,  he  attempts  to  show 
you  how  your  actions  or  poHcies  look  to  other  people,  he 
is  not  always  assured  of  a  grateful  reception. 

There  is  no  man  who  does  not  at  times  need  a  sidelight 
on  what  he  is  doing.  And  the  man  who  does  not  care 
what  others  think,  but  goes  ahead  to  carry  out  the  ideas 
that  may  suggest  themselves  to  him,  is  often  the  man  who 
makes  the  most  serious  mistakes.  It  is  one  thing  to  have  a 
wholesome  measure  of  self-reliance,  and  another  thing  to 
keep  yourself  out  of  the  reach  of  the  casual  counsel  of 
friends.  Being  open  to  counsel  does  not  mean  that  you 
are  under  obligations  to  act  upon  it  if  contrary  to  your 
honest  convictions,  but  it  means  that  you  have  the  advan- 
tage of  the  viewpoints  of  others.  Many  a  man  has  been 
saved  from  unfortunate  business  alliances,  untimely  ac- 
tions and  unnecessary  complications  because  his  friends 
felt  free  to  go  to  him  with  their  criticisms. 


70 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE  FORCE   OF  ILLUSTR.\TION 

Every  business  man  would  do  well  to  cultivate  the  use 
of  illustrations  and  anecdotes  in  his  conversation.  Suc- 
cess in  convincing  another  often  depends  on  how  clear  you 
can  make  your  point. 

Two  men  were  discussing  a  proposed  expenditure. 
One  wanted  to  spend  $500  and  get  the  best  in  the  market. 
The  other  wanted  to  skimp  a  little  and  bring  the  bill  down 
to  $475.  He  argued  that  the  effect  would  be  substantially 
the  same,  and  the  $25  would  be  saved.  But  the  first  man 
said: 

"Suppose  you  were  giving  a  big  dinner  to  a  number  of 
your  friends,  and  should  try  to  save  a  little  by  giving  them 
five  oysters  instead  of  six.  You  might  save  the  cost  of  a 
few  oysters,  and  yet  lose  credit  for  the  whole  dinner. 
Your  friends  would  notice  the  shortage,  even  if  there  was 
an  abundance  of  other  good  things,  and  would  be  likely 
to  think  more  of  your  closeness  on  that  point  than  of  your 
generosity  in  giving  the  dinner." 

The  order  went  through  for  the  full  amount. 

It  is  equally  important,  however,  to  be  able  to  detect 
faulty  application  of  an  illustration,  so  as  not  to  be  de- 
ceived by  it.  A  razor  may  be  a  fine  thing  to  shave  with, 
but  a  dangerous  plaything  for  children. 


71 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

ALL   BUSINESS  AKIN 

A  WELL-ROUNDED  business  man  is  like  an  artist.  The 
artist  can  paint  a  picture  of  a  man,  a  house,  a  horse,  a  sun- 
set, or  a  range  of  mountains.  He  may  specialize  on  one 
class  of  subjects,  as  animals  or  portraits,  but  he  can  under- 
take any  of  the  others  with  some  assurance  of  success.  A 
business  man  who  is  thoroughly  grounded  in  the  funda- 
mentals of  business  procedure  is  usually  able  to  take  hold 
of  almost  any  kind  of  a  business  and  conduct  it  success- 
fully. 

"To  what  extent  is  a  knowledge  of  music  necessary 
in  your  business?"  I  asked  a  man  connected  with  a  large 
musical  instrument  company. 

"Everybody  asks  that  question,"  he  said.  "The  fact 
is  that  we  have  very  few  musicians  either  in  our  factory 
or  salesrooms.  What  we  need  is  business  men,  crafts- 
men, and  salesmen.  The  men  who  test  the  instruments 
need  musical  knowledge,  but  they  are  about  the  only  ones 
who  do  need  it.  A  man  doesn't  have  to  be  a  musician  to 
make  a  brass  horn  any  more  than  he  does  to  make  a  brass 
fixture  for  an  electric  light.  The  superintendent  of  a  mu- 
sical instrument  factory  might  just  as  ably  oversee  an 
automobile  factory.  A  salesman  doesn't  have  to  be  a 
painter  to  sell  pictures,  nor  a  writer  to  sell  books,  nor  a 
cook  to  appreciate  the  quality  of  a  cake." 

This  thought  ought  to  be  reassuring  to  the  man  who 
finds  it  advisable  to  change  his  line  of  business  or  add  to 
it.  The  gulf  between  one  kind  of  business  and  another 
is  often  not  so  wide  as  it  seems. 

72 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE  CONTAGION  OF  LITTLENESS 

Many  a  man  of  natural  ability  has  been  stunted  by 
working  under  a  man  of  small  caliber.  I  knew  a  prom- . 
ising  young  man  who  came  near  being  ruined  in  this  way. 
He  first  had  a  broad-minded  employer  who  gave  him 
plenty  of  hard  and  wholesome  work  to  do,  and  let  him  do 
it  his  own  way.  He  developed  initiative,  resource,  and  self- 
rehance,  and  shouldered  responsibility  easily.  Then  the 
business  was  sold  and  a  new  manager  came.  The  work 
quickly  changed.  The  new  manager  required  every  de- 
tail to  be  submitted  for  his  approval,  and  gave  minute  in- 
structions on  points  which  had  always  been  left  to  the 
judgment  of  the  individual  workers. 

The  young  man  was  forced,  by  his  manager's  own  lit- 
tleness, to  give  up  his  own  resource  and  initiative,  and 
accept  the  other's  ideas.  He  fell  into  the  habit  of  think- 
ing, not  how  the  work  should  be  done,  but  how  the  mana- 
ger's fancy  might  dictate.  He  quit  studying  the  business 
and  began  to  study  the  whims  of  the  manager  His  prog- 
ress stopped  and  he  became  miserable.  A  friend  finally 
pointed  out  to  him  the  truth  of  the  situation,  and  he 
sought  a  position  with  another  firm.  Here  he  again  be- 
came a  man  of  initiative,  judgment,  and  resource.  But 
he  narrowly  escaped  lapsing  into  littleness  through  asso- 
ciation with  a  little-minded  man. 


73 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

BETTING   A   MILLION   TO   ONE 

I  OFTEN  think  how  much  dishonesty  could  be  checked 
if  the  beginner  in  it  could  get  one  idea  —  if  he  could  be 
made  to  stop  long  enough  to  consider  it  even  as  a  poor 
bet  —  if  he  has  no  higher  standard  to  appeal  to.  If  I 
could  talk  to  one  such  person  I  would  say:  "Why  is  it  that 
you  take  property  that  docs  not  belong  to  you  ?  Is  it  not 
because  you  think  you  will  gain  something?  If  it  could 
be  proven  to  you  that  you  would  gain  nothing,  would  you 
have  any  desire  to  do  it  ?  No  man  willingly  goes  into  a 
losing  game.  Suppose  you  get  caught  —  you  will  read- 
ily agree  that  you  have  gained  nothing.  Suppose  you  are 
not  caught  —  you  only  get  a  stronger  notion  that  you 
could  do  it  again  and  not  get  caught.  The  more  you  do 
it  the  more  bold  you  get  until  some  day  —  sure  as  can  be 

—  you  will  get  caught.  Then  you  lose  everything,  all  you 
seem  to  have  gained,  and,  more  than  that,  you  lose  re- 
spectability, self-respect,  and  hberty.  The  odds  are  heav- 
ily in  favor  of  your  getting  caught.  If  you  gamble,  would 
you  stake  your  liberty  and  manhood  against  a  few  dollars  ? 
That 's  virtually  what  you  do  when  you  are  dishonest  in 
any  degree  —  like  betting  a  milHon  to  one. 

"But  there  is  a  far  higher  reason  than  fear  of  punish- 
ment which  should  impel  you  to  turn  back  now  and  do 
right.  Right  doing  leads  to  all  that  is  worth  having  in  the 
world.     It  is  all  that  can  satisfy.     You  know  what  is  right 

—  and  you  risk  nothing  but  have  everything  to  gain  by 
doing  right." 


74 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   DANGER   OF  PERSONAL   INFLUENCE 

There  is  always  one  right  step  to  be  taken  —  and  per- 
haps several  possible  wrong  ones. 

A  young  man  who  wished  to  obtain  a  position  with  a 
certain  railroad  said  to  an  influential  friend: 

•  "Your  house  is  a  large  shipper  with  that  road,  and  a 
request  from  you  ought  to  have  weight  in  getting  me  in 
there." 

"Now,  see  here,"  said  the  friend,  "do  you  know  just 
how  your  career  ought  to  work  out  —  just  where  you 
ought  to  be  this  year,  and  where  next  year,  so  as  to  fully 
develop  your  latent  capacity?" 

"No,"  said  the  young  man.  "I  don't  think  anyone 
knows  that." 

"Well  then,"  said  the  friend,  "here  you  come,  at  one 
of  the  most  critical  points  of  your  career,  and  ask  to  have 
yourself  forced  into  certain  channels  of  life  whether  you 
belong  there  or  not.  You  are  willing  to  let  the  mere  chance 
of  personal  influence  guide  you  at  this  time,  when  the  least 
erroneous  move  might  change  the  course  of  your  whole 
life.  What  you  should  do  is  to  seek  diligently  to  find  what 
is  exactly  the  right  step  for  you  to  take  at  this  time.  You 
can't  afford  to  have  your  future  thwarted  by  getting  a 
wrong  start." 

The  young  man  has  never  ceased  to  be  grateful  that  h^ 
didn't  get  the  railroad  position,  for  events  proved  that  his- 
friend  was  right. 


75 


THOUGHTS        ON       BUSINESS 

HOW  FRIENDS  MAY  LIMIT  US 

A  MAN  is  sometimes  harmed  more  than  helped  by  his 
friends,  especially  if  they  hedge  him  in  with  their  notions 
of  what  he  ought  to  do.  Whenever  he  tries  to  step  outside 
those  Hmits  he  runs  into  their  admonitions  and  is  turned 
back  into  the  ruts. 

"Some  years  ago,"  said  a  successful  business  man, 
"I  got  down  in  the  world.  I  had  given  up  a  line  of  busi- 
ness that  was  unsatisfactory  as  a  life  work  and  did  not  lead 
anywhere.  In  the  year  or  two  that  followed  I  was  search- 
ing for  some  line  that  had  a  future  in  it  for  me.  When  I 
discovered  that  what  I  had  was  not  the  right  thing  I  lost 
no  time  in  looking  for  something  else.  My  friends  did 
not  understand  my  plan  at  all,  and  saw  only  the  changes 
I  had  made.  They  began  to  advise  me  to  settle  down, 
stick  to  what  I  had,  and  work  up  from  there.  They  did 
not  throw  any  light  on  my  problem,  but  only  confused  me 
with  their  positive  advice.  After  a  period  of  unusually 
hard  luck  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  main  trouble 
was  too  much  advice  —  good,  kind,  sympathetic  advice, 
but  pernicious  in  its  effect  on  my  career.  So  I  resolved 
to  make  a  bold  stroke  and  get  out  of  the  reach  of  my 
friends.  I  moved  to  a  distant  city,  and  began  anew  accord- 
ing to  my  own  standards,  unhampered  by  what  others 
thought  I  was  fitted  for.  And  I  have  prospered  steadily 
from  that  day  to  this." 


76 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


MAKE   SOME   NEW  FRIENDS 

Don't  get  into  the  habit  of  going  to  the  same  places 
and  in  the  same  company  all  the  time.  I  knew  two  men 
who  sat  in  the  same  office  all  day  long,  and  yet,  always 
took  their  luncheon  together.  One  of  them  seldom  went 
anj^'here  without  the  other.  I  do  not  think  this  is  the 
best  plan.  They  may  get  a  good  deal  from  each  other's 
company,  but  they  certainly  lose  much  by  not  associating, 
part  of  the  time,  with  other  men.  I  would  not  care  to  dine 
with  the  same  man  every  day,  even  if  he  were  the  bright- 
est one  of  his  kind. 

Noon  is  a  good  time  for  business  men  to  get  new 
thoughts  —  but  many  of  them  do  not  make  the  most  of 
the  opportunity.  I  beHeve  in  a  luncheon  to-day,  a  li- 
brary to-morrow,  an  art  gallery  next  day,  a  visit  to  some 
business  estabhshment  the  next,  and  so  on  —  sometimes 
alone,  sometimes  with  a  friend,  sometimes  with  a  party. 

If  you  are  in  a  rut,  try  this  plan.  Get  out  of  the  beaten 
track  for  an  hour  or  so  every  day  and  see  how  much  it  will 
broaden  you.  Cultivate  the  acquaintance  of  men  who  are 
getting  out  of  the  ruts  themselves  —  the  men  who  are 
open-minded,  progressive,  and  worth  while. 


77 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


"SEEING  THINGS" 

It  pays  to  get  out  and  see  things.  Many  a  man  applies 
himself  so  closely  to  his  own  business  that  he  knows  noth- 
ing of  what  is  going  on  in  the  big  mercantile  or  manufact- 
uring establishment  two  blocks  away.  He  may  spend 
days  or  weeks  trying  to  work  out  some  problem  of  business 
organization  or  the  like,  thinking  perhaps  he  is  a  pioneer 
in  that  field,  when  as  a  matter  of  fact  the  same  problem 
has  been  most  happily  solved  by  a  dozen  concerns  within 
walking  distance. 

Many  men  regret  that  they  cannot  travel  more  in  order 
to  see  things  and  get  new  ideas.  And  yet  they  do  not  use 
the  opportunities  at  their  feet.  They  live  for  years  in 
plain  sight  of  establishments  where  there  is  much  to  learn 
by  merely  going  inside  of  them.  An  hour  or  two  some 
noon,  or  some  afternoon,  would  furnish  sights  just  as  new 
and  perhaps  just  as  helpful,  as  if  they  were  found  a  thou- 
sand miles  away. 

Many  good  ideas  can  be  adapted  from  one  kind  of 
business  to  another.  A  shirtmaker  may  learn  something 
from  an  iron  foundry,  and  a  paint  manufacturer  may 
learn  valuable  things  in  a  dry  goods  store  or  a  piano  fac- 
tory. It  is  always  interesting  and  helpful  to  see  things 
in  the  process  of  manufacture.  It  takes  away  the  mystery 
of  common  things,  and  at  the  same  time  adds  interest  to 
them.  It  opens  up  the  mind  and  gives  it  something  con- 
crete to  think  about. 


78 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE  VALUE   OF  TRAVEL 

A  CERTAIN  amount  of  travel  means  as  much  to  a  busi- 
ness man  as  a  pinch  of  salt  does  to  a  piece  of  meat. 

"I  haven't  had  a  vacation  in  four  years,"  said  one  busi- 
ness man  to  another.  '*  There  are  always  so  many  things 
here  that  require  my  attention  that  I  haven't  been  able 
to  see  my  chance  to  get  away  from  one  year's  end  to  the 
next." 

"That 's  not  it,"  said  the  other.  "The  fact  is  that  you 
get  in  a  rut  and  don't  know  it.  You  don't  get  far  enough 
away  from  your  work  to  get  the  right  perspective.  If 
you  could  go  away  for  a  few  weeks  you  could  look  back 
and  laugh  at  some  of  these  little  things  that  you  have  al- 
lowed to  chain  you  down  here  for  four  years.  When  you 
get  far  enough  away  big  things  look  little,  and  when  you 
get  too  close  to  little  things  they  look  big." 

"Yes,  I  know,"  said  the  first,  "but  my  work  is  differ- 
ent." 

"Not  a  bit  of  it,"  protested  the  other.  "I  used  to 
think  that  myself,  but  once  I  had  to  take  a  trip  for  sad  per- 
sonal reasons,  and  I  discovered  that  the  world  really  went 
on  about  the  same.  Since  then  I  have  frequently  taken  a 
trip  and  it  always  puts  new  vigor  into  my  work.  I  be- 
grudge neither  time  nor  money  spent  in  the  right  kind  of 
travel." 


79 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

USE   YOUR  WASTEBASKET  MORE 

Did  you  ever  see  a  man's  desk  piled  high  with  papers 
and  things,  the  pigeon-holes  crammed  full,  and  running 
over?  Do  you  know  what  the  trouble  is?  It  is  tliis: 
He  keeps  a  lot  of  things  he  ought  to  put  in  the  wastebasket. 
He  keeps  them  because  he  thinks  he  will  want  them  some 
day,  and  is  afraid  to  throw  them  away.  If  he  would  look 
squarely  at  every  paper  that  comes  to  his  desk,  and  decide 
then  and  there  as  to  its  actual  value,  he  could  throw  away 
a  great  deal  of  stuff  and  never  miss  it. 

Few  causes  contribute  so  much  to  encourage  a  hab't 
of  indecision  as  keeping  old  things  because  you  don't  want 
to  make  up  your  mind  to  dispose  of  them.  A  man  who 
saves  too  many  old  things  gets  stopped  up  mentally,  be- 
cause every  paper  he  puts  away  has  a  thought  in  his  mind 
to  correspond  with  it,  which  says,  "Some  day  I  'm  going 
to  do  something  about  that  paper."  An  accumulation  of 
such  intentions  is  not  wholesome;  it  distracts  the  mind 
from  present  work. 

If  you  are  Uke  that,  use  your  wastebasket  more.  If 
you  know  a  man  like  that,  help  him  to  see  the  point.  He 
will  thank  you  some  day. 


80 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

WHEN  LETTERS  ARE   COAITARED 

To  know  how  to  write  a  good  business  letter  is  a  very 
important  thing.  I  was  in  the  office  of  a  prominent  busi- 
ness man  one  morning  and  found  him  looking  over  his 
mail.  He  had  advertised  for  a  bright  young  man  as  assist- 
ant in  one  of  the  departments  of  his  business. 

"These  tell  their  own  story,"  he  said,  handing  over  for 
my  inspection  a  bunch  of  about  thirty  letters.  "I  know  I 
don't  want  to  see  any  of  these  fellows,  because  I  can  tell 
from  their  letters  that  they  don't  know  the  first  principles 
of  good  business." 

"But  you  might  find  some  good  raw  material  among 
them,  some  one  you  could  break  in, "  I  suggested. 

"Perhaps  I  could,"  he  said.  "But  why  should  I? 
Here  are  four  good  letters  that  show  the  right  idea.  I  am 
going  to  see  these  young  men  first,  and  unless  I  am  greatly 
mistaken  I  shall  find  the  one  I  want  among  them. " 

I  looked  again  at  the  thirty  letters.  It  was  easy  to  see 
why  he  had  thrown  them  aside.  They  were  unbusiness- 
like, carelessly  composed,  and  poorly  penned.  One  re- 
quested an  interview  without  answering  a  single  question 
asked  in  the  advertisement.  Another  gave  a  seven-page 
autobiography.  One  letter  was  on  the  back  of  a  blank 
form.  All  the  applicants  showed  more  or  less  ignorance  of 
how  to  write  an  effective  letter,  and  so  lost  even  a  chance 
at  the  opportunity  offered. 


8i 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

MEASURING   EXPERIENCE 

A  YEAR  of  experience  means  much  or  little  according 
as  we  have  gained  one  point  a  day  or  one  a  month. 

Did  you  ever  hear  the  story  of  the  young  man  who  met 
the  girl  at  a  New. Year's  reception?  He  talked  with  her 
for  three  minutes  that  day,  saw  her  again  in  two  weeks  and 
talked  for  five  minutes,  and  saw  her  at  intervals  of  a  week 
or  two  until  the  first  of  April.  Then  he  said  to  himself, 
"  I've  known  that  girl  for  three  months. "  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  adding  all  the  periods  of  conversation  together,  he  had 
spent  but  thirty  minutes  in  her  company.  Another  man 
met  the  same  girl  at  the  same  time,  but  at  the  end  of  the 
first  week  he  had  spent  a  total  of  ten  hours  with  her  — 
just  twenty  times  as  long  as  the  other  man  had  in  three 
months. 

Some  men  learn  a  business  just  like  that  —  some  learn 
more  in  a  week  than  others  in  three  months.  But  a 
"year's  experience"  is  credited  up  to  both  when  twelve 
months  have  rolled  by. 

When  you  count  your  years  of  experience,  consider 
also  the  gait  you  have  traveled. 


82 


THOUGHTS         ON         BUSINESS 

OUR    DAILY    WORK    SACRED 

It  is  pleasing  to  think  that  all  wholesome  work,  which 
serves  the  need  of  mankind,  is  a  sacred  task.  Not  long 
ago  a  dehvery  man  brought  to  my  home  an  easy  chair 
which  I  had  purchased.  I  was  impressed  with  the  solici- 
tude he  showed  in  dehvering  it  at  the  promised  time,  and 
the  interest  he  took  in  his  work. 

But  why  not  ?  Why  should  any  honorable  work  ever 
be  other  than  interesting  ?  What  is  our  duty  to  do  should 
be  to  us  a  sacred  work.  In  bringing  me  that  chair  that 
man  had  played  a  part  in  the  great  drama  of  distribution. 
If  there  had  been  no  one  to  do  that  work,  I  should  have 
been  deprived  of  the  comfort  the  chair  gave  me,  and  will 
give  me  for  years  to  come.  And  the  salesman,  the  dealer, 
the  railroad  man,  the  furniture  maker,  and  the  lumberman 
—  all  these  would  have  lost  a  measure  of  the  reward  for 
their  service. 

It  was  a  good  work  to  dehver  that  chair,  and  it  opened 
the  channels  through  which  many  were  blessed. 

Is  your  work  something  that  in  the  end  blesses  your 
fellow  men  ?  Then  count  that  work  sacred,  and  do  it  with 
all  your  heart.  Feel  something  of  that  enthusiasm  which 
is  always  associated  with  a  noble  work. 


83 


ABOUT  METHODS 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


PULLING   TOGETHER   AS   ONE 

Unity  of  purpose  and  action  is  very  essential  to  the  full 
success  of  any  business.  Dissension  is  always  a  serious 
handicap.  I  know  a  firm  of  three  men  who  conduct  a  suc- 
cessful financial  business.  Their  method  of  handling 
important  questions  is  worthy  of  the  consideration  of  the 
oflScers  of  almost  every  firm.  When  a  proposition  comes 
up,  they  get  together  and  talk  it  over  from  all  points  of  view. 
Then,  although  there  are  but  three  of  them,  they  cast  a 
formal  ballot  for  "yes"  or  "no."  Each  man  is  required 
to  register  his  individual  conviction  of  the  matter  without 
knowing  definitely  how  the  others  are  to  vote.  The  right 
action,  instead  of  personal  authority,  is  what  they  desire. 
If  the  vote  is  divided  there  is  further  discussion  until  the 
conclusion  is  unanimous.  When  an  important  branch  of 
the  general  plan  is  reached  another  vote  is  taken  as  before. 

This  method  has  many  advantages.  It  throws  the 
entire  energy  of  the  three  men  in  one  direction.  It  tends 
to  prevent  one  man  from  giving  up  his  convictions  just  to 
keep  peace  with  a  more  aggressive  member.  It  prevents 
pouting,  pulhng  back,  standing  aloof,  criticising,  and  in 
other  ways  discouraging  those  who  are  carrying  out  the 
plan.  It  insures  unity  of  action,  and  engenders  a  spirit  of 
helpful  co-operation  which  permeates  the  entire  stafif  of 
assistants  entrusted  with  carrying  out  the  details  of  the 
work. 


87 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

CO-OPERATION 

The  strength  of  unity  is  indisputable.  Few  things  do 
more  to  retard  the  natural  progress  of  a  business  or  a  move- 
ment than  a  lack  of  intelligent  co-operation. 

The  energy  expended  on  a  "tug  of  war"  is  not  con- 
structive energy.  It  is  like  one  man  pumping  water  out 
of  a  basin  while  another  pumps  it  back. 

There  are  two  chief  reasons  for  a  lack  of  co-operation : 
One  is  that  men  do  not  agree  on  what  is  best  to  be  done. 
The  other  is  that  selfish  motives  deceive  men  into  thinking 
that  they  can  get  more  by  going  alone. 

The  remedy  for  the  first  is  comparison  of  views,  ex- 
change of  ideas,  and  the  estabhshment  of  the  right  idea  in 
the  minds  of  all.  The  remedy  for  the  second  is  the  knowl- 
edge that  the  common  good  is  also  the  real  good  of  the 
individual.  Selfishness  is  often  but  another  name  for  igno- 
rance. If  a  man  desires  to  obtain  the  most  good  for  himself 
he  should  know  that  his  legitimate  share  of  a  great  common 
good  is  greater  than  any  possible  good  he  could  obtain  for 
himself  alone.  The  narrow-minded  man  fishes  with  a 
hook  and  thinks  to  have  the  whole  catch  for  himself.  The 
broad-minded  man  joins  with  others  in  using  a  seine  — 
and  his  portion  of  the  catch  exceeds  by  far  what  he  might 
get  with  the  hook. 

Co-operation  is  the  most  effective  way  to  secure  the 
most  of  what  each  one  desires  to  obtain. 


88 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

NEWNESS   INEVITABLE 

Conservatism  is  often  merely  a  polite  name  for  being 
in  a  rut.  There  is,  of  course,  a  sane  conservatism  that  is 
progressive  but  cautious  —  the  opposite  of  impulsive  exper- 
imentation. But  there  is  also  a  conservatism  that  sticks  to 
the  beaten  track  because  the  grc^ve  is  worn  so  deep  it  is 
hard  to  get  over  the  edges. 

Things  move  swiftly  these  days.  Along  with  increasing 
speed  in  transportation  and  communication  the  whole 
motion  of  the  world's  activity  has  been  accelerated.  The- 
ories which  have  bound  the  world  for  decades  and  centuries 
are  parting  like  ropes  of  sand.  Methods  are  outgrown 
every  season.  Last  year's  automobile  is  a  back  number 
beside  this  season's  model.  The  public  is  rapidly  becom- 
ing educated  in  many  things.  Competition  is  growing 
keener.  Few,  indeed,  are  the  conditions  that  remain  un- 
touched by  this  spirit  of  change. 

It  is  a  matter  of  vital  importance  to  recognize  these 
changing  conditions,  otherwise  we  are  liable  to  be  following 
outgrown  methods  while  priding  ourselves  on  our  "con- 
servatism. "  This  is  the  lesson  that  many  of  the  large  and 
old-estabHshed  business  houses  are  learning — that  the  world 
is  demanding  something  new  every  minute,  and  that  it  is 
turning  to  those  who  will  supply  it.  Precedents  are  giving 
way  before  progressiveness. 


89 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

DON'T   SPLIT   HAIRS 

The  stickler  often  defeats  himself;  and  much  that 
passes  for  defense  of  a  principle  is  merely  a  little  personal 
opinion.  An  eastern  railroad  at  one  time  sent  a  great 
many  cars  over  a  certain  western  road.  One  day  it  filed  a 
claim  for  seven  dollars  against  the  western  road,  and  that 
road  did  its  best  to  keep  the  money.  The  correspondence 
lasted  four  years  —  the  eastern  road  prolonged  it  just  for 
fun,  to  see  how  far  the  other  road  would  carry  it.  But  in 
the  meantime  it  quit  sending  cars  that  way.  Finally  a 
representative  of  the  traffic  department  called  to  ask  why 
his  Hne  didn't  get  the  business  it  used  to  get.  For  an  an- 
swer the  officer  of  the  eastern  road  brought  out  a  pile  of 
correspondence  six  inches  high  and  placed  it  on  the  table 
before  him.  "That,"  he  said  ,"is  the  result  of  our  effort 
to  collect  a  claim  of  seven  dollars  from  your  road.  We 
quit  sending  cars  your  way  four  years  ago." 

Then  the  two  men  figured  out  how  much  that  piece  of 
stickling  had  cost  the  western  road  in  four  years.  It 
amounted  to  over  $8,000. 

It  is  one  thing  to  stand  your  ground  when  a  real  principle 
is  involved,  and  another  thing  to  carry  your  contention 
beyond  all  reason.  Good  will  is  sometimes  worth  more 
than  petty  satisfaction. 


90 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

KEEP   YOUR   PROMISES 

Neglecting  the  exact  terms  of  a  definite  promise  is 
often  a  serious  tiling.  The  complicated  activities  of  busi- 
ness make  it  necessary  to  work  to  a  schedule,  and  even  a 
little  delay  at  one  point  may  interrupt  the  whole  plan. 

A  man  has  an  appointment  with  two  other  men  at  3 
o'clock  —  he  has  given  his  word  that  he  will  be  there,  and 
they  have  made  plans  based  on  that  promise.  Before  he 
leaves  his  office  it  is  necessary  that  he  approve  a  piece  of 
printing  that  is  ready  for  the  press.  The  printer  has  faith- 
fully promised  to  have  the  proof  at  his  office  by  2  o'clock. 
But  2  o'clock  comes  and  the  proof  is  not  there.  The  print- 
er is  informed  by  telephone  and  says  it  will  come  right  away. 
At  five  minutes  to  3  it  has  not  come.  The  man  must  either 
break  his  word  and  perhaps  seriously  interrupt  the  plans 
of  others,  or  he  must  leave  without  approving  the  printing, 
and  so  delay  his  own  plans.  Neither  course  would  have 
been  necessary  if  the  printer  had  kept  his  promise,  or,  fail- 
ing of  his  first,  had  kept  his  second. 

This  situation,  with  variations,  is  a  familiar  annoyance 
in  every  line  of  business.  Its  prevalence,  however,  does 
not  lessen  the  dishonor  of  a  broken  promise.  It  ought  to 
be  considered  as  unsavory  to  have  a  worthless  promise  as 
to  have  a  worthless  credit.  The  satisfactory  conduct  of 
business  demands  that  promises  be  kept  or  notice  promptly 
given. 


91 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

GIVE   CREDIT   FOR   IDEAS 

I  REMEMBER  reading  a  poem  once  in  which  certain 
types  of  architecture  were  referred  to  as  "dreams  wrought 
in  masonry. "  This  seemed  mere  poetry  at  first,  but  as  I 
think  of  it  now  it  seems  to  be  the  truth. 

Take  that  tall  office  building  yonder,  with  the  light 
gleaming  from  every  window,  tier  on  tier.  All  that  was 
once  the  dream  of  one  man.  Before  the  first  stone  was 
laid,  before  the  architect's  plans  were  drawn,  there  was  a 
time  when  one  man  said  to  another,  "Let  us  put  up  a  great 
building  there."  And  before  that  first  audible  expression 
the  building  existed  only  as  an  idea,  a  thought,  or  I 
might  say,  a  dream,  in  the  mind  of  that  man.  He  walked 
its  corridors  when  it  was  still  a  dream.  But  now  it  is  a 
"dream  wrought  in  masonry.'* 

Every  building,  bridge,  railroad,  steamship,  machine, 
book,  organization,  or  government  in  the  world  —  every 
one  —  was  once  an  unexpressed  thought  like  that. 

Great  credit  is  due  those  who  first  conceive  the  ideas 
that  underlie  the  world's  work. 


92 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

PERFECTING   THE   PRODUCT 

Every  progressive  manufacturer  is  continually  seeking 
to  make  his  product  better.  It  is  the  spirit  of  the  age. 
This  rivalry  of  excellence  is  wholesome,  and  it  is  a  fact  of 
no  small  significance  that  competition  is  coming  to  be  large- 
ly a  matter  of  making  the  best  product. 

The  question  naturally  presents  itself  to  every  manu- 
facturer, "  How  can  I  improve  my  product  ?  " 

Certain  rules  for  improvement  are  comprehensive  and 
almost  universally  applicable.    They  are : 

( 1 )  Determine  by  analysis  the  fundamental  elements  of 
the  completed  product;  as  size,  form,  function,  substance, 
appearance. 

(2)  Conceive  an  ideal  standard  in  each  of  these  lines. 

(3)  Compare  each  element  with  the  ideal  standard, 
and  note  the  specific  room  for  improvement. 

(4)  Subject  each  element  to  exhaustive  criticism  from 
the  standpoint  of  the  user. 

(5)  Challenge  the  elements  as  to  appropriate  relation- 
ship and  individual  utility. 

(6)  Reach  a  practical  compromise  between  present 
and  ideal  conditions. 

Thus  the  elements  of  a  shoe  are  the  sole,  the  heel,  up- 
pers, the  last,  the  leather,  the  finish.  An  ideal  standard  for 
each  according  to  the  kind  of  shoe,  may  be  conceived ;  the 
user's  requirements,  and  harmony  of  the  parts  may  be  con- 
sidered. The  shoe  embodying  these  points  perfectly 
would  be  the  best  of  its  class. 


93 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

SYSTEMATIC   CRITICISM 

After  a  manufactured  product  is  fairly  well  defined  in 
certain  general  directions,  there  is  still  plenty  of  room  for 
improvement.  The  most  effective  manner  of  securing 
this  improvement  is  by  criticism  of  the  work  from  various 
standpoints.  In  some  form  or  other  this  criticism  goes  on 
in  nearly  every  manufacturing  establishment,  but  in  many 
of  them  it  is  done  in  a  casual  rather  than  in  a  systematic  way. 

I  heard  of  a  plan  the  other  day  that  shows  one  good 
method  of  systematic  criticism. 

*'Our  business,"  said  a  manufacturer,  "is  divided  into 
two  parts — the  manufacturing  end  and  the  selling  end.  The 
two  organizations  have  different  standards  to  go  by.  The 
manufacturing  men  try  to  make  their  product  perfect  ac- 
cording to  mechanical  ideas  and  tests.  The  selHng  organi- 
zation works  in  the  other  direction.  The  salesmen,  in- 
stead of  merely  trying  to  sell  what  the  manufacturing  men 
have  produced,  class  themselves  more  as  outsiders  —  as 
dealers  and  consumers.  They  virtually  buy  their  goods 
from  the  manufacturing  department,  and  insist  that  the 
goods  shall  embody  every  good  idea  the  dealer  or  consumer 
might  reasonably  desire.  The  manufacturing  men  work 
for  the  approval  of  the  selling  organization,  and  take  great 
pride  in  having  their  work  so  good  that  even  the  most  stud- 
iously critical  salesman  can  find  nothing  further  to  suggest. 
We  find  that  the  plan  works  well. " 


94 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   LOOKS   OF  A  LETTER 

Few  business  letters  are  above  criticism.  The  fact  that 
a  letter  is  a  representative  of  a  business  is  not  half  appre- 
ciated. Occasionally  you  see  a  letter  that  commands  your 
admiration  because  it  is  free  from  flaws.  The  paper  is  not 
too  cheap  and  not  too  good,  the  printing,  or  lithographing, 
or  stamping  is  well  designed  and  well  executed,  the  type- 
writing is  faultless,  the  language  is  good,  and  the  signature 
readable.  Many  letters  have  some  of  these  qualities,  but 
few  have  all  of  them  at  once.  There  is  either  cheap  paper, 
or  odd  colored  paper,  or  awkward  typewriting,  uneven 
margins,  a  diagonal  rubber  stamp  signature,  or  a  letter- 
head that  suggests  a  circus  poster.  Any  one  of  these  things 
on  an  otherwise  perfect  letter  is  like  a  pink  cravat  on  a  man 
in  evening  clothes. 

Individuality  in  the  appearance  of  a  letter  is  allowable 
and  often  desirable,  but  it  is  not  necessary  to  transgress  the 
laws  of  good  taste  and  common  sense  to  attain  it.  It  should 
be  the  pride  of  every  business  man  that  his  letters  command 
the  respect  which  he  himself  might  wish  to  command  if  he 
took  the  message  in  person.  A  letter  often  goes  as  the  sole 
representative  of  a  business,  and  the  impression  it  gives  is 
the  impression  the  recipient  gets  of  the  business. 


95 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

DOING  MORE  THAN  YOU  CAN 

Necessity  is  the  discoverer  of  hidden  capacity,  no  less 
than  the  "mother  of  invention. "  A  factory  superintendent 
was  telling  me  that  he  was  turning  out  800  dozen  a  month 
of  an  article  with  the  same  force  and  the  same  equipment 
that  he  used  to  turn  out  300  with. 

"  You  must  not  have  been  working  up  to  your  full  capac- 
ity before, "  I  said. 

"Evidently  not,"  he  said.  "But  we  thought  we  were. 
I  thought  so,  and  the  men  thought  so,  and  the  members  of 
the  firm  thought  so.  If  anybody  had  told  me  we  were  not 
doing  our  very  best  I  should  have  been  offended.  But  the 
business  began  to  increase,  and  the  orders  kept  pouring  in, 
and  we  got  behind,  and  simply  had  to  do  more.  With  the 
work  crowding  in  on  us,  we  simply  had  to  organize  the  work 
some  way  to  get  it  done.  There  wasn't  room  to  put  on  but 
a  few  more  men  —  none  to  speak  of.  But  we  put  more 
speed  on  the  machines,  and  laid  out  the  work  more  system- 
atically so  as  to  utilize  any  waste  energy,  and  the  first 
thing  we  knew  we  were  actually  producing  more  goods  than 
we  had  thought  it  possible  to  make.  It  does  seem  now  that 
we  are  running  at  the  highest  possible  capacity.  But  I 
suppose  if  we  had  to  do  it  we  would  find  some  way  to  in- 
crease our  present  output." 


96 


THOUGHTS       ON       BUSINESS 

LEAVE  WORRY  TO   THE   SYSTEM 

In  talking  with  a  man  who  occupies  a  high  position  in 
a  large  manufacturing  concern  I  made  reference  to  the 
weight  of  rcsponsibihty  which  I  considered  must  rest  upon 
his  shoulders. 

"It  doesn't  worry  me  very  much,"  he  said. 

I  looked  about  at  the  hundreds  of  bookkeepers  and 
stenographers  and  checking  clerks  that  filled  room  after 
room  in  every  direction,  and  asked  how  this  could  be. 

" I  leave  the  worry  to  the  system, "  he  answered.  "Our 
system  is  so  constructed  that  it  bears  the  burden  of  all 
the  detail  of  the  business. " 

' '  WTiat  is  your  general  definition  of  system  ?  "    I  asked. 

"  System, "  he  said,  "is  Hke  a  machine.  It  can  do  things 
no  mortal  can,  A  man  by  himself  can't  pull  much  of  a 
load.  But  he  can  construct  an  engine  that  will  pull  a 
heavily  loaded  train  across  the  continent  at  fifty  miles  an 
hour.  The  strength  of  even  a  giant  is  very  small  when 
compared  with  a  locomotive.  And  the  biggest  business 
man  in  the  world  can't  do  very  much  unless  he  has  a  system, 
but  with  it  he  can  work  wonders.  As  the  engine  needs 
coal  and  water,  and  a  steady  fire,  and  oiled  bearings,  so  does 
a  great  system  need  some  attention.  But  the  system,  not 
the  engineer,  bears  the  burden,  and  pulls  the  heavy  load. " 


97 

1 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

RED   TAPE,   THE   ROBBER 

Too  much  "system"  is  like  a  trusted  watchman  who 
steals  things  in  the  night.  A  business  expert,  looking  for 
ways  to  cut  down  expenses  in  a  big  manufacturing  estab- 
lishment, was  being  shown  through  it  by  the  manager.  They 
came  to  a  large  office  where  a  score  or  more  of  men  were  at 
work  making  out  a  certain  kind  of  single  item  bills.  The 
manager  said,  "Come  on,  there  's  nothing  here;  they  are 
just  making  out  bills. "  But  the  expert  said,  "  Wait  a  min- 
ute, let  us  see  if  these  bills  are  really  necessary." 

It  was  found  that  the  bills  were  merely  memoranda  of 
purchases,  and  that  the  dealers  were  being  furnished  in 
another  way  with  a  complete  record  of  the  shipments. 
When  the  matter  was  looked  squarely  in  the  face  it  was  seen 
that  these  bills  were  entirely  unnecessary,  and  that  the  work 
of  all  those  men  really  amounted  to  nothing.  This  work 
had  been  costing  the  company  $25,000  a  year  for  clerk  hire. 
The  business  was  clearing  about  five  per  cent  net  profit,  so 
that  a  half  million  dollars'  worth  of  business  had  to  be 
done  to  earn  that  amount  —  just  to  be  wasted  in  useless 
red  tape. 

The  same  thing  is  going  on  hourly,  in  some  degree,  in 
nearly  every  business.  There  are  dozens  of  reports,  tables, 
records,  totals,  subdivisions  of  accounts,  and  the  like,  which 
are  not  worth  what  they  cost.  Perhaps  red  tape  is  robbing 
you.    Look  and  see  for  yourself. 


98 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

VARY   THE   WORK 

Some  lines  of  work  do  not  afford  much  room  for  growth. 
It  is  customary  to  group  such  work  together  and  assign  cer- 
tain persons  to  do  that  exclusively.  The  work  has  to  be 
done,  the  firms  are  willing  to  pay  for  it,  and  men  are  willing 
to  do  it,  and  so  the  work  continues.  But  such  work  should 
not  be  assigned  to  ambitious  boys  —  especially  for  any 
great  length  of  time.  Many  boys  come  to  work  in  the  hope 
of  gaining  general  experience,  and  should  not  be  put  into  a 
blind  rut  when  they  are  under  the  mistaken  impression  that 
they  can  grow  out  of  it  into  something  better.  It  would  be 
a  good  plan,  in  many  instances,  to  portion  out  such  work  so 
that  no  one  has  to  become  warped  by  doing  it. 

In  a  manufacturing  estabhshment  I  saw  a  boy  feeding 
cards  into  a  machine.  His  work  was  nothing  but  a  constant 
repetition  of  the  same  motion  ten  thousand  times  a  day,  a 
million  times  in  four  months.  There  was  absolutely  no 
variation  in  the  work. 

"  WTiat  does  that  boy  know  to-day  that  he  didn't  know  a 
month  ago  ?  "     I  asked. 

"  Not  ver)'  much, "  said  the  man.  "  He  may  become  ex- 
pert in  feeding  that  machine,  but  that  is  about  all. " 

"How  long  do  you  keep  a  boy  at  such  work  ?  "  I  asked. 

**  Oh,  not  very  long.  We  let  him  work  at  it  a  while  and 
then  pass  him  along  to  something  else  and  then  put  a  new 
boy  at  the  machine.  It  wouldn't  do  to  keep  one  boy  at  such 
work  for  a  very  long  time.     We  need  him  higher  up. " 


99 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

INTERRUPTIONS   WASTE  TIME 

If  there  were  some  way  to  estimate  the  exact  percentage 
of  time  and  working  energy  that  is  lost  through  interrup- 
tions, there  would  doubtless  be  many  a  change  in  the 
arrangement  of  offices. 

"I  've  never  done  a  full  day's  work  since  I  have  been  in 
that  office, "  a  man  said  to  me. 

"Well,  that 's  a  confession,"  I  said. 

"No,"  he  rephed,"  it's  not  a  confession,  it's  a  com- 
plaint. It  isn't  my  fault.  I  'm  willing  to  work,  and  I  do 
put  in  full  time.  But  the  fact  is  our  office  is  one  con- 
tinual interruption.  If  I  was  ever  able  to  work  steadily  for 
fifteen  minutes  without  having  my  attention  distracted  I 
can't  remember  it." 

"What's  the  matter?"    I  asked. 

"Oh,  there  's  so  much  confusion.  There  are  eight  of 
us  in  one  room,  and  we  interrupt  each  other  every  time  we 
turn  around.  We  are  in  such  close  quarters  that  every 
remark  made  in  the  room  is  heard  by  all,  and  has  come  to 
be  understood  as  being  intended  for  all.  Persons  from 
other  departments  come  in  to  see  us  about  the  work  and 
there  is  general  conversation  all  around.  What  we  need 
is  to  be  scattered  about  a  little  more,  and  be  where  there  is 
more  individual  seclusion.  I  have  asked  the  manager  to 
arrange  the  office  differently,  but  it  is  hard  to  make  him  ap- 
preciate the  need  of  it. " 


100 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   MOTE  AND   THE   BEAM 

The  faults  we  see  in  others  are  often  to  be  found  in 
some  degree  in  ourselves,  A  merchant  who  took  great 
pride  in  the  appearance  of  his  store,  which  was  recognized 
as  a  model  of  its  class,  had  occasion  to  visit  a  store  in  a 
neighboring  city  where  no  such  pretensions  were  made. 
He  was  struck  by  the  contrast.  The  windows  were  crudely 
trimmed,  the  salespeople  were  careless,  the  floors  were  not 
clean,  the  goods  were  not  arranged  in  an  orderly  manner, 
large  and  unsightly  sign  cards  were  posted  on  every  hand, 
and  the  atmosphere  of  the  place  was  disagreeable.  He 
congratulated  himself  that  his  store  was  not  like  that.  But 
when  he  returned  to  his  own  store  he  noticed  that  his  win- 
dows were  not  entirely  free  from  the  charge  of  crudeness. 
He  noticed  evidences  of  carelessness  in  his  own  salespeople. 
The  floors,  too,  were  not  as  clean  as  they  might  be.  The 
manner  of  displaying  goods  also  showed  room  for  improve- 
ment. The  sign  cards  might  be  neater.  And  many  other 
points  were  found  not  so  perfect  as  he  had  thought  them. 

In  this  experience  he  learned  that  it  is  possible  to  get  so 
used  to  defects  in  things  about  us  as  not  to  notice  them,  and 
that  we  may  have  in  ourselves  the  first  elements  of  the  very 
evils  that  shock  us  when  we  see  them  in  others. 


lol 


THOUGHT   S        ON        BUSINESS 

FIXED   SALARIES 

The  policy  of  fixed  salaries  for  certain  work,  which 
some  corporations  adhere  to,  is  open  to  question  on  purely 
economic  grounds.  It  often  causes  a  waste  of  energy  far 
greater  than  a  variation  of  the  policy  might  cause. 

A  department  manager  in  a  large  concern  was  allowed 
$15  a  week  for  a  stenographer.  He  secured  the  services  of 
a  young  woman  at  that  figure,  patiently  taught  her  all  the 
intricacies  of  his  work,  and  was  able  to  shift  upon  her  much 
of  the  detail  which  had  been  requiring  his  personal  atten- 
tion. He  had  just  begun  to  use  this  freedom  to  work  out 
some  new  plans  for  the  development  of  his  department,  when 
the  stenographer  asked  for  more  money  —  a  good  position 
being  open  to  her  elsewhere,  and  she  having  made  a  good 
year's  progress  in  her  work.  The  manager  was  obHged  to 
inform  her  that  he  was  helpless  in  the  matter,  as  the  firm 
had  fixed  the  salary  of  a  stenographer  for  him  at  $15,  had 
declined  to  increase  it  before  and  would  do  so  again.  Ac- 
cordingly she  left  —  and  the  manager  was  obliged  to  give 
up  his  freedom  and  his  new  plans,  and  begin  all  over  again 
to  break  in  a  new  helper  to  carry  on  the  burden  of  detail 
which  otherwise  would  hold  him  at  his  desk.  All  his  for- 
mer effort  at  organizing  his  work  had  been  lost  —  just  as  it 
would  be  again  with  the  next  helper. 

What  a  colossal  waste  of  energy  must  be  caused  by  that 
one  theory  of  fixed  salaries  —  for  the  same  thing  must  hap- 
pen thousands  of  times. 


102 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

UNCONSCIOUS   DISORDER 

The  disregard  which  some  men  have  for  the  appear- 
ances of  their  offices  is  often  hard  to  explain. 

"Isn't  it  strange,"  I  said  to  a  furniture  salesman, 
"that  some  men  who  have  well  furnished  homes  are  con- 
tent to  spend  the  best  part  of  their  hves  in  offices  that  are 
crude  and  ill  kept?" 

"  Yes,  it  is, "  he  rephed.  "  I  have  never  been  able  to  see 
how  they  can  stand  it.  But  I  suppose  it  is  just  a  matter  of 
habit.  They  get  so  used  to  it  that  they  can't  realize  how  it 
looks  to  other  people.  I  had  an  interesting  experience 
about  a  month  ago.  A  new  man  connected  with  the  man- 
agement of  a  large  manufacturing  concern  came  and 
bought  a  ninety-dollar  mahogany  desk.  I  went  out  to  his 
office  to  see  what  else  I  might  sell.  You  should  have  seen 
that  office!  The  president  of  the  concern,  although  he  had 
a  prosperous  business  and  is  said  to  be  worth  nearly  a  mil- 
lion, sat  at  an  old  battered-up  desk  that  wouldn't  have 
brought  three  dollars  at  a  second-hand  store.  Another 
officer  of  the  company  actually  had  for  a  desk  a  kitchen 
table  covered  with  wrapping  paper.  Everything  they  had 
was  on  that  scale.  But  when  the  new  desk  was  put  in  it 
opened  their  eyes  —  it  caused  a  perfect  revolution.  They 
had  all  their  rubbish  cleaned  out,  built  partitions,  had 
new  floors  put  in,  and  bought  a  number  of  mahogany  desks 
and  other  pieces  to  match.  They  are  proud  of  their  offices 
now,  and  wonder  how  they  ever  stood  it  before." 


10} 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

TOO    MUCH   NOISE 

One  of  the  great  problems  the  future  will  have  to  solve 
is  how  to  lessen  the  noise.  Silence  is  one  of  the  rarest 
things  in  the  world.  It  is  a  sublime  thing,  but  we  are  so 
blunted  by  harsh  noises  that  a  moment  of  real  silence  would 
be  hard  to  endure.  But  noise  is  discord,  and  should  not 
seem  necessary  to  us.  It  must,  by  its  very  nature,  cause 
the  loss  of  some  of  the  essence  of  life;  and  it  must  be  con- 
sidered as  something  which  progress  will  destroy. 

I  once  visited  an  establishment  where  iron-wheeled 
trucks  and  typewriters,  and  shouts  of  men  mingled  with 
other  noises  to  form  a  general  clatter  and  confusion. 

"How  can  you  stand  this  noise  ? "  I  asked  a  man. 

"Oh,  we  get  used  to  it,"  he  said.  "I  don't  notice  it 
very  much.  When  I  came  back  from  my  vacation  it  an- 
noyed me  a  great  deal,  but  I  got  used  to  it  again.  But  a  good 
deal  of  this  noise  is  unnecessary.  They  could  put  rubber 
tires  on  those  trucks,  and  put  a  partition  around  those 
type- writers,  and  stop  this  loud  calling  across  the  building, 
and  it  wouldn't  be  so  bad.  But  the  men  in  authority  aren't 
around  here  much,  and  don't  seem  to  care.  Perhaps  they 
think  our  feelings  are  cheaper  than  partitions  and  rubber 
tires. " 

Why  not  take  a  few  reasonable  measures  to  lessen  un- 
necessary noise,  instead  of  blunting  the  sensibilities  and 
getting  used  to  it  ?  It  would  add  much  to  the  efficiency  of 
the  workers. 


104 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


MIND    THE   LITTLE    THINGS 

The  sum  of  little  things  often  exceeds  a  few  great  ones. 
It  is  often  the  little  things  that  count  in  the  long  run. 

A  country  merchant  was  once  talking  with  a  traveling 
man  in  regard  to  small  wares.  "I  can't  see,"  he  said, 
"how  it  pays  to  bother  with  so  many  of  those  little  things. 
Now  if  I  sell  an  item  for  ten  dollars  I  can  see  where  my 
profit  comes  in.  But  ten  cents,  fifteen  cents,  twenty-five 
cents  —  where 's  the  profit?" 

"I  know  something  that  is  better  than  an  argument," 
said  the  traveling  man.  "You  just  take  a  quantity  of  your 
old  sales-checks,  and  have  them  sorted  according  to 
amounts.  Put  everything  that  is  less  than  a  dollar  in  one 
pile,  and  everything  over  ten  dollars  in  another  pile,  and  so 
on.  I  don't  know  just  what  you  will  find,  but  you  will 
learn    something. " 

Some  years  later  the  merchant  came  into  a  wholesale 
house,  and  by  chance  met  the  traveling  man.  "  You  don't 
remember  me,  do  you?"  he  said. 

"Not  your  name,  nor  your  town, "  said  the  other,  "but 
you  are  the  man  that  was  going  to  sort  his  sales-checks. " 

"That's  right,"  said  the  merchant.  "And  I  want  to 
tell  you  I  am  a  thousand  times  obliged  to  you  for  the  sug- 
gestion. I  now  own  ten  stores,  and  we  go  in  strong  for 
goods  under  a  dollar." 


lo; 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

HOW   TIME   IS   WASTED 

Many  a  man  who  is  at  the  head  of  a  business  or  a  de- 
partment loses  much  valuable  time  because  other  people 
bring  to  him  matters  that  might  readily  be  cared  for  by  his 
assistants.  A  factory  superintendent  was  leaving  his  office 
when  he  was  informed  that  a  man  was  waiting  to  see  him. 
He  looked  at  the  man  and  then  walked  off. 

"I  know  that  man,"  he  said,  "and  I  know  what  he 
wants.  He  is  from  one  of  the  other  departments.  He 
always  asks  for  me  every  time  he  brings  a  matter  that  be- 
longs to  the  stock-clerk  or  the  bookkeeper.  If  I  am  not 
there  they  will  attend  to  it  just  as  well  as  I  can.  But 
when  I  am  there  they  wait  for  me  to  take  the  initiative.  I 
am  trying  to  teach  them  to  take  some  responsibility  about 
their  work,  and  keeping  out  of  the  office  is  one  way  to  put 
them  on  their  own  resources." 

While  this  is  a  rule  that  should  be  applied  only  in  dealing 
with  certain  types  of  assistants,  it  contains  a  wholesome 
measure  of  general  common  sense.  Many  department 
managers  allow  their  time  to  be  taken  up  with  unnecessary 
interviews  on  matters  that  they  might  teach  their  assistants 
to  attend  to  at  first  hand.  And  many  persons  in  every  large 
business  take  to  the  heads  of  the  departments  matters  that 
are  too  commonplace  to  need  their  personal  attention. 
This  lessens  the  producing  time  of  the  most  highly  paid 
workers  in  the  business  —  a  significant  loss. 


106 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

A   T.\LLOW   CANDLE   STANDARD 

A  MAN  who  had  never  heard  of  gas  or  electric  lights 
might  be  content  with  tallow  candles.  Some  business 
men,  because  they  are  not  well  informed  on  lines  tributary 
to  their  business,  and  are  not  especially  open  to  conviction, 
are  still  content  to  order  candles.  And  the  dealers  are 
obliged  to  keep  a  few  boxes  on  the  top  shelf  waiting  for  the 
men  who  insist  on  having  them. 

A  conspicuous  instance  of  this  policy  is  in  the  matter 
of  printing.  The  average  business  man  knows  too  little 
about  it.  Perhaps  not  one  man  in  ten  knows  the  "point 
system"  —  the  universal  standard  of  type  measurement. 
Not  knowing  the  first  elements  of  printing,  how  can  he 
know  very  much  about  the  latest  improvements  in  color 
work?  How  can  business  men  buy  printing  intelligently 
when  they  do  not  know  what  the  market  affords?  How 
can  they  dictate  the  characteristics  of  the  printing  that  is  to 
represent  their  business?  How  can  they  order  what  is 
best  for  their  business  if  they  don't  even  know  the  best  ex- 
ists? 

It  is  the  same  in  many  other  lines.  The  architect  must 
know  the  latest  improvements  in  bricks;  the  dry  goods  man 
must  know  the  most  recent  effects  in  weaving,  and  so  on. 
Unless  this  is  done  there  is  no  telling  how  far  from  the  mark 
he  may  hit.  In  an  electric  light  age  it  will  never  do  to  stick 
to  the  tallow  candle  standard. 


107 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

■    ■      ■  ■  ■  '         ■  ■   —  -  ■  —  -  -  - 

THEORIES  AND   FACTS 

We  hear  it  said  that  one  man  proceeds  from  theory  and 
another  from  facts.  This  difference  is  usually  pointed  out 
by  the  man  who  prides  himself  on  being  "practical." 
It  is  well  to  be  practical,  but  there  is  such  a  thing  as  being 
"too  practical, "  as  the  term  goes.  A  man  is  "too  practi- 
cal" when  he  measures  the  value  of  every  action  by  imme- 
diate results,  and  does  not  allow  time  for  natural  develop- 
ment, does  not  take  into  consideration  the  results  which, 
though  vital,  cannot  be  measured  in  dollars  and  cents  — 
such  as  prestige,  good  will,  and  estabhshed  use. 

On  the  other  hand,  a  man  is  too  theoretical  when  he 
disregards  fundamental  facts,  and  either  ignorantly  or 
carelessly  goes  ahead  contrary  to  what  sound  experience 
has  proved  to  be  true. 

Have  theories,  for  they  are  the  life  of  your  plans  and 
actions;  and  don't  forsake  your  theory  just  because  you 
meet  with  a  few  minor  facts  that  are  unfavorable  —  these 
are  but  obstacles.  But  be  sure  you  have  a  place  in  your 
theory  for  all  facts  that  are  fundamental. 


io8 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

PLAY   FAIR 

Little  differences  of  opinion  should  not  be  allowed  to 
shut  off  profitable  business  relations.  A  manufacturer 
changed  printers  merely  to  satisfy  his  dignity  in  a  Httle 
dispute  over  a  dollar's  worth  of  paper.  The  new  printer 
was  not  equipped  to  do  the  work  as  well  as  the  old 
one,  who  had  done  it  for  years.  After  much  loss  of  time 
and  money  and  the  loss  of  many  customers  because  of  a 
belated  catalogue,  the  manufacturer  found  it  to  his  advan- 
tage to  smother  his  pride  and  return  meekly  to  his  first 
printer. 

It  is  foolish  to  divert  business  from  long  established  and 
otherwise  satisfactory  channels  just  to  satisfy  a  whim.  It 
reminds  one  of  the  little  girl  who  refused  to  play  with  the 
others  because  they  wouldn't  let  her  win  every  game- 
Business  is  a  game.  Play  the  game  fairly  according 
to  rules.  Don't  pout  if  your  playmate  scores  one  over 
you  occasionally  —  that 's  part  of  the  pleasure  of  the 
game. 


109 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

WAITING  IN  THE  ANTE-ROOM 

Much  valuable  time  is  wasted  waiting  to  see  the  men 
who  sit  in  private  offices.  While  a  great  deal  of  this  wait- 
ing is  inevitable,  a  little  more  system  on  the  part  of  the  men 
who  conduct  the  offices  would  prove  a  boon  to  callers. 

Not  long  ago  I  waited  half  an  hour  to  see  a  man,  and 
when  I  made  inquiry  I  found  that  my  card  had  not  been 
sent  in.  The  boy  was  so  afraid  of  the  manager  that  he 
wouldn't  go  in  until  the  other  caller  came  out.  The  man- 
ager, not  knowing  that  I  was  waiting,  was  having  a  sort  of 
social  visit  with  his  caller.  My  business  could  have  been 
transacted  in  one  minute,  but  it  took  thirty  —  thirty  times 
as  long  as  it  might  have  taken. 

Managers  ought  not  to  have  office  boys  that  are  afraid 
of  them  They  should  have  the  cards  come  right  in  so 
they  can  see  that  others  are  waiting.  If  they  are  going  to  be 
busy  a  long  time  they  should  send  out  word  to  that  effect, 
or  better,  step  out  a  minute  and  say  so.  They  should  pro- 
vide something  to  read  —  a  few  good  papers  and  maga- 
zines —  for  those  who  have  to  wait. 


no 


THOUGHTS        O   N        BUSINESS 

PROVIDE  AGAINST  DISPUTE 

A  DEFINITE  understanding  in  the  beginning  often 
saves  a  great  deal  of  trouble  later  on.  A  salesman  began 
work  for  a  typewriter  concern  on  commission.  He  was 
assigned  to  a  certain  territory,  and  told  in  a  general  way 
that  he  was  to  have  all  that  the  territory  yielded.  Both 
the  salesman  and  the  manager  seemed  to  understand  the 
agreement  —  but  each  understood  it  in  his  own  way. 

After  a  while  trouble  began.  One  customer  who  had 
been  rounded  up  by  the  salesman  came  to  the  office  and 
completed  his  purchase.  Some  customers  had  already 
been  interested  and  reported  by  a  previous  salesman. 
Some  prospective  customers  reported  by  the  salesman  were 
handled  at  a  different  office  by  salaried  employes  of  the 
company.  The  salesman  claimed  his  commissions,  and  the 
house  disputed  his  right  to  them.  The  salesman  had  but 
three  courses  open — to  sue,  to  quit,  or  to  give  in.  He  chose 
to  quit —  losing,  however,  a  number  of  good  prospects. 

Later  on  the  manager  was  heard  to  remark,  "We  lose 
business  for  lack  of  men.  Good  men  are  very  scarce." 
Did  he  dream  that  nearly  every  good  man  in  the  business 
had  heard  the  story  of  the  ex-salesman  ?  Such  stories  cer- 
tainly tend  to  make  good  men  scarce. 

Both  employer  and  employe  in  this  case  lost  by  not 
having  a  definite  understanding.  If  the  employer  was  act- 
ing in  good  faith  he  should  have  provided  for  such  contin- 
gencies when  he  employed  the  man,  leaving  no  room  for 
dispute  even  with  an  agent  who  did  not  know  enough  to 
bring  up  the  points  in  advance. 

Ill 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   NEW   MAN   IN   POWER 

Full  authority  should  seldom  be  given  suddenly  to  an 
untried  man.  Like  the  novice  trying  to  run  an  automo- 
bile, he  is  apt  to  cause  damage.  His  intentions  may  be  of 
the  best,  but  a  wrong  touch  at  the  lever  in  a  moment  of 
doubt  or  excitement  may  prove  disastrous.  He  has  every- 
thing to  gain  and  nothing  to  lose  by  making  his  trial  efforts 
under  the  supervision  of  a  more  experienced  man.  The 
theory  of  teaching  a  boy  to  swim  by  pushing  him  off  the 
bridge  may  work  in  some  instances,  but  that  is  not  always 
a  safe  method  to  follow.  It  should  not  be  considered  un- 
comphmentary  to  a  new  man  to  let  him  begin  his  adminis- 
tration in  a  mild  way,  and  take  on  more  authority  as  he 
demonstrates  his  abihty  to  use  it  wisely. 

Nearly  every  new  man  in  authority  passes  through  an 
experimental  stage  —  especially  if  he  has  not  had  some 
definite  experience  along  similar  lines.  Due  allowance 
should  be  made  for  the  difficulty  which  any  man  may 
encounter  while  he  is  learning  to  get  just  the  right  grip  on 
his  sceptre.  Instead  of  severely  criticising  a  new  manager 
because  of  lapses  from  an  ideal  standard,  it  would  be  bet- 
ter to  regard  his  extreme  rulings  as  temporary  experiments 
rather  than  matured  specimens  of  his  administrative 
methods. 


112 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


SUSPENSE 

Suspense  is  one  of  the  greatest  dead  weights  progress 
has  ever  had  to  carry  —  unnecessary  suspense,  the  sus- 
pense of  neglect,  procrastination,  and  thoughtlessness. 
In  the  cities  we  often  see  the  famiUar  sight  of  a  street  block- 
ade. Street  cars,  trucks,  wagons,  carriages,  automobiles, 
all  entangled  in  a  mass  where  none  can  move  forward  or 
backward.  I  have  often  looked  at  such  blockades  and 
thought  of  the  other  delays  that  might  also  be  caused  by 
the  non-coming  of  those  entangled  there  —  the  merchant 
and  his  customers  waiting  for  goods  to  be  delivered,  the 
workman  waiting  for  materials,  the  people  waiting  for 
friends,  and  a  thousand  contingent  purposes  that  no  one 
might  think  of  —  all  waiting  for  the  front  car  to  move  out 
of  the  narrow  passage,  and  it  waiting  for  the  wagon  broken 
down  on  the  track  ahead  of  it.  In  one  instance  I  remem- 
ber the  men  were  making  all  possible  haste  to  clear  away 
the  obstruction  so  the  great  procession  might  move  on. 
But  I  often  think  of  the  blockade  in  business  affairs  — 
not  wagons  and  automobiles,  but  orders  and  advices  and 
invoices  and  proofs  and  errands  —  where  no  one  is  clearing 
away  the  obstruction,  but  all  are  waiting  patiently  or  im- 
patiently, but  without  turning  a  hand  to  break  the  block- 
ade. Perhaps  on  your  desk  or  in  your  pigeon-hole  is  the 
piece  of  paper  they  are  all  waiting  for. 


"3 


DEVELOPING  THE  WORKERS 


THOUGHTS         ON        BUSINESS 


MULTIPLY   YOUR  ASSETS 

One  of  the  greatest  opportunities  before  any  business 
is  that  of  developing  the  capacity  of  its  employes  by  sys- 
tematic instruction. 

A  certain  manufacturer  who  prints  magazines,  book- 
lets, and  bulletins  for  his  salesmen,  once  explained  his 
theory.     It  is  something  like  this: 

Two  men  know  more  than  one;  two  hundred  men 
know  more  than  two.  Two  hundred  salesmen  have  two 
hundred  different  ways  of  handling  a  given  point  —  and 
all  of  them  cannot  be  the  best.  Perhaps  six  are  better 
than  the  others.  Those  six  best  ways  are  an  asset  of  the 
company.  By  giving  those  ideas  to  all  the  other  salesmen, 
that  asset  is  multiplied  by  two  hundred.  If  one  idea  helps 
one  salesman  to  sell  ten  cents  more  a  week,  that  is  $5.00  a 
year  for  one,  or  $1,000  a  year  for  all.  If  it  sells  a  dollar  or 
more  a  week,  that  is  $10,000  a  year.  If  there  are  fifty  such 
ideas  in  a  year  they  increase  the  business  $250,000.  And 
the  year's  sales  prove  it. 

This  is  no  mere  business  suggestion.  It  is  a  great 
idea  of  tremendous  power  and  scope  —  like  the  discovery 
of  steam  and  electricity,  and  the  invention  of  printing. 
Are  you  modern  enough  to  grasp  it  ? 


117 


THOUGHTS         ON         BUSINESS 

TEACHING    EMPLOYES 

Instructions  to  employes  may  with  profit  be  occa- 
sionally repeated.  Even  those  who  thoroughly  understand 
them  are  helped  by  having  their  minds  refreshed  on  some 
of  the  points,  while  to  the  majority  the  repetition  will  come 
with  all  the  force  of  a  new  idea.  A  teacher,  referring  to  a 
recent  experience  with  her  class,  remarked,  "Education 
is  largely  a  process  of  pouring  water  through  a  sieve  in  the 
hope  that  some  will  cling  to  the  meshes." 

Sometimes  it  is  found  that  the  second  explanation  of  a 
process,  method,  or  attiude  accompHshes  more  vital  work 
in  the  development  of  the  employe  than  does  the  first.  The 
reason  for  this  is  that  the  first  explanation  has  prepared  the 
mind  for  it,  so  that  when  it  is  explained  a  second  time  there 
is  enough  of  the  first  thought  left  to  answer  to  the  second  — 
to  appreciate  it  and  make  it  welcome. 

The  average  employe  likes  to  learn  more  and  more 
about  his  business;  and  if  instruction  be  given  in  the  right 
way  it  becomes  an  effective  quickener  of  every  phase  of 
purpose  and  energy. 

Many  employers  and  managers  need  to  be  often  remind- 
ed of  the  undeveloped  resources  of  their  men  and  women. 
It  is  just  as  much  a  part  of  good  business  judgment  to  work 
the  field  of  individual  capacity  as  it  is  to  work  more  and 
more  thoroughly  the  fields  of  trade. 


ii8 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

WHAT   EMPLOYES   NEED 

The  importance  of  coaching  employes  in  the  right 
attitude  towards  their  work  is  obvious  when  we  stop  to 
consider  that  most  of  the  needs  of  the  average  worker  are 
mental  needs.  Ask  any  employer  or  manager  what  his 
men  need  in  order  to  be  better  workmen  and  he  will  inva- 
riably answer  bv  naming  some  mental  quahty.  One  says, 
"They  need  more  earnestness  in  their  work."  Another 
says,  "They  need  more  comprehensiveness,  a  better  grasp 
of  the  purpose  of  the  work."  Another  says,  "They  need 
more  thoroughness. "  Others  point  out  the  need  of  initia- 
tive, judgment,  enthusiasm,  common  sense,  and  so  on. 
In  every  case  the  need  is  mental. 

These  mental  needs  are  usually  supplied  in  three 
ways  —  all  of  them  consciously  communicative.  One 
way  is  to  distribute  printed  matter  among  the  workers, 
containing  discussions  of  the  points  that  need  to  be  ex- 
pressed in  their  work.  Another  way  is  to  get  the  employes 
together  in  a  body  and  have  them  addressed  by  some 
member  of  the  firm,  or  by  a  specialist  from  the  outside. 
The  other  way  is  in  systematic  talks  either  singly  or  in 
groups  by  the  heads  of  departments  to  the  men  and  women 
under  their  charge. 

Most  of  the  firms  that  have  made  adequate  trial  of  such 
methods  speak  confidently  of  the  good  accomplished.  This 
may  be  taken  as  trustworthy  evidence  of  the  general  utility 
of  the  methods  sxigg'ested. 


"9 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

STOOPING   TO   CONQUER 

•  One  of  the  greatest  problems  confronting  the  average 
mercantile  employer  to-day  is  how  to  get  young  men  and 
young  women  to  do  their  best.  I  heard  a  theory  on  this 
subject  that  seems  to  have  a  measure  of  truth  in  it  —  at 
least  it  works,  and  that  is  a  good  test. 

It  was  the  idea  of  getting  the  employe's  interest  before 
you  try  to  educate  him.  A  manager  was  showing  me  some 
copies  of  a  httle  monthly  magazine  issued  in  the  interests  of 
the  employes  of  the  establishment.  It  seemed  to  me  to  be 
filled  up  with  trivial  personahties,  pictures  of  groups  of 
employes,  home-made  cartoons,  jokes  and  various  grades 
of  nonsense.  I  mentioned  this  fact  to  the  manager  and  he 
said: 

"Yes,  Iknowit  looks  frivolous  to  you,  but  it  is  very  inter- 
esting to  our  employes.  If  we  printed  nothing  but  learned 
essays  on  business  principles,  or  formal  bulletins  of  instruc- 
tions, they  would  not  be  widely  read.  But  if  you  fill  up  the 
magazine  with  such  things  as  the  employes  are  already  in- 
terested in,  they  will  read  it  —  and  that  is  half  of  the  battle. 
Then  you  can  throw  in  a  few  simple  words  of  advice  here 
and  there  and  some  of  it  is  read  and  accepted.  And  even 
that  little  is  worth  the  effort  and  the  cost.  If  you  want  to 
reach:  employes  you  must  first  get  their  interest,  and  then 
talk,  in  language  that  they  can  understand. "    .         .     . 


120 


THOUGH   TS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   UNWISE   REPRIMAND 

It  is  seldom  desirable  to  reprimand  an  employe  before 
others.  It  injures  his  self- respect,  causes  him  to  resent  the 
criticism,  and  closes  his  mind  against  any  good  it  might  do 
him.  To  call  him  aside  privately  and  administer  the  rebuke 
is  the  more  effectual  way,  and  the  more  gentlemanly  way. 
Business  authority  should  not  assume  the  privilege  of  ruth- 
lessly transgressing  the  laws  of  common  courtesy  of  man 
to  man. 

A  reprimand  in  the  presence  of  others  may  be  the  desir- 
able procedure  in  cases  where  the  guilty  one  has  done  some- 
thing which  intimately  concerns  all  present  —  as  in  the  case 
of  an  underhand  misrepresentation.  But  the  need  of  such 
action  is  rare.  The  usual  incident  of  an  open  reprimand  is 
not  so  carefully  planned.  It  is  merely  the  thoughtless  out- 
burst in  a  moment  of  displeasure,  regardless  of  those  who 
may  happen  to  be  present.  The  humihation  resulting 
from  such  an  incident  has  no  wholesome  effect  upon  the 
individual,  and  cannot  but  serve  to  lessen  his  legitimate 
pride  in  his  work.  He  goes  among  his  fellow  workers  with 
the  knowledge  that  each  one  knows  of  the  incident,  and 
this  causes  him  to  feel  disgraced  and  lose  a  measure  of  his 
self-respect.  The  pubHc  word  of  disfavor  is  apt  to  find 
an. echo  in  other  minds  and  so  turn  upon  the. individual 
unnQcessary  and  undeserved  criticism.  " 


121 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

A  TASK  FOR  REFORMERS 

The  effort  to  reform  humanity  should  not  always  begin 
at  the  bottom.  Sometimes  it  is  wise  to  begin  at  the  top, 
and  sometimes  in  the  middle  —  and  always  where  the  soil 
is  worth  the  seed. 

In  speaking  of  this  matter  a  man  of  wide  business  ex- 
perience said: 

"There  is  a  big  field  waiting  for  reformers.  It  is  not 
among  the  so-called  lower  classes,  where  so  much  reform 
effort  is  spent,  and  where  a  good  deal  of  it  is  no  doubt 
wasted.  It  is  among  the  people  who  are  represented  by 
the  'average  employe'  in  our  great  mercantile  and  industrial 
institutions.  It  is  a  sad  fact  that  only  a  very  small  percent- 
age of  these  people  are  really  in  earnest  —  that  is,  are  really 
trying  to  do  their  best. " 

"  What  per  cent  would  you  say  ?  "    I  asked. 

"Not  over  five  per  cent,"  he  replied.  "I  really  think 
that  would  be  a  high  estimate." 

"Oh,  you  can't  mean  that!"  I  exclaimed. 

"  Yes,  I  do,"  he  asserted.  "  It  may  vary  a  little  in  differ- 
ent estabHshments,  and  in  different  kinds  of  work,  but  in 
general  that  is  just  about  where  the  matter  stands.  My 
observations  are  wide,  and  cover  a  period  of  twenty  years. 
Something  should  be  done  to  turn  back  the  tide  of  indif- 
ference and  shiftlessness  which  spreads  through  this  class 
of  employes  in  nearly  every  business  establishment." 


I?.?, 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

HELPING  THE  UNAMBITIOUS 

The  question  is  sometimes  asked :  "  What  can  be  done 
to  arouse  the  large  class  of  employes,  especially  boys  and 
young  men,  who  seem  to  have  no  aim  in  life  beyond  pay- 
day and  quitting  time  ?  " 

This  is  an  ever  recurring  question  to  the  managers  of 
most  business  establishments.  For  sheer  lack  of  better 
material  miUions  of  this  class  of  employes  are  reluctantly 
admitted  to  the  industrial  pay  rolls  of  the  country,  and  so 
come  to  form  a  part  of  the  working  forces  of  nearly  every 
business.  The  question  is  therefore  a  serious  one  to  most 
persons  in  authority  in  business. 

In  talking  with  a  prominent  business  man  along  this 
line,  he  said: 

"Education  of  some  sort,  moral  or  industrial,  is  the  only 
hope  for  such  people.  Business  is  about  the  only  point  of 
contact  they  have  with  anything  higher  than  their  own 
plane,  so  it  must  be  largely  through  business  that  they  will 
receive  any  awakening  that  may  come  to  them.  It  is  a 
kind  of  missionary  work  that  seems  thrust  upon  the  busi- 
ness man,  a  part  of  the  moral  responsibiHty  of  the  employer, 
and  must  often  be  patiently  carried  on  whether  it  fully  pays 
for  itself  in  each  case  or  not." 


125 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   MASTER'S   EYE 

There  is  an  ancient  proverb  that "  the  master's  eye  does 
more  work  than  both  his  hands."  The  modern  version 
of  the  master's  eye  is  a  card  catalogue  system  that  keeps  a 
record  of  the  work  of  thousands  of  employes  of  a  great 
industrial  institution.  In  passing  such  a  card  file  I  made 
inquiry  about  it,  and  the  manager  said : 

"This  is  our  system  for  keeping  track  of  the  mistakes 
made  by  employes.  Nearly  every  mistake  we  discover  in 
any  part  of  the  work  is  traced  back  to  the  employe  who 
made  it,  and  it  is  recorded  here  against  his  name. " 

"Do  you  point  out  each  person's  mistakes  to  him  at  the 
time?" 

"Yes,  when  they  amount  to  much.  But  we  don't 
speak  about  every  mistake.  That  would  only  confuse  the 
employes  and  make  them  fearful  and  probably  lead  to  mak- 
ing more  errors." 

"What  do  you  find  is  the  cause  for  most  mistakes?" 

"  Carelessness  —  almost  every  time. " 

"How  does  your  system  reach  that?" 

"Well,"  he  said,  "the  mere  fact  that  we  keep  such  a 
record  is  a  stimulus  to  employes  to  be  careful.  Even  if  we 
never  looked  up  a  card  it  would  be  worth  while  keeping  up 
the  system  just  for  the  general  influence  it  has.  But  we 
refer  to  it  often.  And  we  know  it  works  because  the  per- 
centage of  mistakes  is  lowered  from  year  to  year, " 


124 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

IN  THE   PAY   ENVELOPE 

There  is  a  constantly  recurring  opportunity  to  do  some- 
thing for  the  education  of  employes  in  using  the  pay  enve- 
lope to  carry  some  message  of  business  policy. 

"I  never  let  a  pay-day  pass,"  said  a  manager  to  me, 
"without  putting  a  Httle  printed  slip  of  some  Idnd  in  the 
envelopes  for  the  employes.  Alany  good  working  ideas 
can  be  conveyed  to  them  in  that  way. " 

"WTiat  sort  of  stuff  do  you  give  them?"    I  asked. 

"Things  like  this,"  he  said,  reaching  in  a  drawer  and 
pulhng  out  a  handful  of  httle  cards.  One  had  a  paragraph 
about  "Courtesy,"  another  about  " PunctuaHty, "  and 
others  about  "Enthusiasm,"  "Cheerfulness,"  "Errors," 
and  the  hke. 

"You  can  say  a  lot  of  things  in  this  way  that  you  can't 
in  any  other,"  he  continued  "Now  take  that  card  on 
'PunctuaHty.'  We  have  a  number  of  men  here  that  I  don't 
especially  care  to  reprimand  —  they  are  a  Httle  too  far  along 
for  that.  But  they  waste  a  lot  of  time  around  the  edges  of 
the  day.  I  couldn't  very  well  speak  to  them  about  it.  But 
when  that  card  came  out  those  very  men  took  it  to  themselves 
and  have  been  keeping  better  time  every  since.  In  many 
ways  I  can  see  the  effect  of  these  little  cards  on  our  people, 
and  I  think  it  is  well  worth  the  trouble  and  cost." 


125 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

GOOD   READING   FOR   EMPLOYES 

A  GOOD  way  to  stimulate  the  energies  of  employes  is  to 
furnish  them  with  good  books,  which  awaken  them  to  see 
their  opportunities  in  life  and  give  them  a  purpose  to  work 
for. 

In  an  industrial  establishment  recently  I  saw  a  bulletin 
to  employes  which  read: 

"At  the  office  will  be  found  a  number  of  helpful  books 
which,  we  believe,  will  be  of  great  value  to  those  of  our 
employes  who  will  read  them.  To  bring  these  books  within 
the  reach  of  all,  we  have  purchased  a  quantity  of  them  at  a 
low  price  and  offer  them  to  employes  at  25  cents  each.  The 
regular  seUing  price  of  these  books  is  one  dollar. " 

When  I  spoke  to  the  manager  about  the  plan  he  said, 
"Yes,  we  not  only  sell  them  the  books  for  25  cents,  but  we 
give  them  all  the  time  they  want  to  pay  it  in  —  several 
months  if  they  want  to." 

"And  do  you  dispose  of  many  books?"  I  asked. 

"Not  so  many  as  I  would  hke, "  he  rephed.  "I  think 
we  have  sold  three  or  four  hundred  of  this  last  lot.  But 
when  you  stop  to  think  that  we  have  several  thousand  em- 
ployes it  doesn't  seem  a  large  percentage.  But  it  reaches 
those  that  are  in  earnest,  and  those  are  the  very  ones  we 
hoped  to  reach  when  we  began  this  plan.  The  right  kind 
of  a  book  will  do  wonders  for  an  employe. " 


126 


THOUGHTS        ON        liUSINESS 

THE   DEVELOPMENT    OF    ENTHUSIASM 

Every  manager  admits  the  value  of  enthusiasm  in 
business  but  many  who  admire  it  do  not  know  how  to  stir 
it  up  among  their  men. 

If  we  analyze  enthusiasm  we  find  it  is  made  up  of 
certain  thoughts  and  feelings.  These  are  some  of  them: 
The  feeling  that  you  have  an  opportunity  to  show  what 
is  in  you  —  an  opportunity  that  every  man  loves;  a  cer- 
tain measure  of  responsibility  that  quickens  self-reli- 
ance and  pride  in  one's  work;  a  wholesome  measure  of 
freedom;  a  goal  to  work  for;  the  spirit  of  a  game,  the 
inherent  desire  to  win;  the  assurance  that  those  above 
you  are  interested  in  your  work;  the  feeUng  that  you  are 
doing  something  worth  while,  something  that  will  be  suc- 
cessful, something  that  is,  in  a  sense,  new;  the  thought 
that  others  are  watching  the  outcome  of  what  you  are  doing; 
a  clear  view  of  the  plans  ahead;  the  spirit  of  an  occasion; 
the  feeling  that  time  is  short  and  precious;  a  cordial 
relation  between  those  working  together;  and  the  enthu- 
siasm of  others. 

If  the  manager  will  do  his  part  to  foster  these  various 
elements  the  total  effect  will  be  enthusiasm  —  a  sponta- 
neous, energetic,  wholesome,  conquering  enthusiasm. 


127 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

A   PROMOTION   SYSTEM 

The  cry  is  often  heard  that  many  large  business  houses 
have  Httle  in  the  way  of  a  promotion  system,  and  that  em- 
ployes may  work  away  in  some  department  for  years  with- 
out official  notice  being  taken  of  them  as  individuals.  It 
is  good  to  know  that  this  is  not  true  in  all  business  houses, 
some  of  which  have  methods  that  bring  the  individual  to 
the  attention  not  merely  of  the  department  manager  but  of 
those  in  highest  authority. 

In  a  large  mercantile  institution  I  was  shown  a  system 
which  is  perhaps  typical  of  the  best  method  in  general 
use.     The  man  who  explained  it  to  me  said : 

"We  have  a  complete  information  card  for  every  em- 
ploye. The  cards  are  arranged  according  to  the  time  of 
promotion  or  consideration.  We  go  over  a  certain  number 
of  these  cards  each  day  or  each  week,  look  up  the  individual, 
make  inquiries  about  him,  consider  his  fitness  for  promo- 
tion or  advancement  in  salary,  and  take  such  action  as  the 
conditions  warrant.  In  the  course  of  six  months  we  get 
around  to  the  same  person  again.  If  an  increase  was 
promised  we  have  a  note  of  it.  If  it  is  desired  to  consider 
a  person  one  month  or  three  months  from  the  time  the 
matter  comes  up,  his  card  is  put  in  the  proper  box  to  be 
considered  at  that  time.  The  result  is  that  no  one  is  ever 
lost  sight  of,  and  many  satisfactory  promotions  are  made 
possible. " 


128 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   OTHER   SIDE 

A  CORRESPONDENT,  referring  to  the  point  quoted  from 
a  prominent  employer,  to  the  effect  that  "not  over  five  per 
cent  of  the  employes  of  the  average  mercantile  concern  are 
in  earnest,  that  is,  are  really  trying  to  do  their  best, "  writes : 

"We  must  consider  both  sides  of  the  question.  If  it  is 
true  that  only  five  per  cent  are  in.  earnest  it  seems  to  my 
mind  a  severe  arraignment  of  employers  themselves.  In- 
terest cannot  be  one-sided.  It  must  be  mutual.  Employ- 
ers can  develop  more  interest  among  employes  by  the  sim- 
ple process  of  manifesting  more  interest  on  their  own  part. 
Many  employers  do  not  know  their  employes  at  all  and  do 
not  make  much  effort  to  know  them.  They  know  the 
heads  of  departments,  and  sometimes  the  assistants,  but 
the  rest  of  the  force  they  don't  know  even  by  sight.  Fur- 
thermore, there  is  seldom  anything  like  a  promotion  system 
whereby  honest  attention  to  business  gets  proper  recogni- 
tion and  reward.  Vacancies  are  frequently  filled  with  new 
employes  when  the  older  ones  are  well  able  to  do  the  work. 
Let  employers  show  some  definite  interest  in  employes, 
and  you  will  see  the  employes'  interest  in  the  business 
increasing. " 


12Q 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

ENLIGHTENED    SELFISHNESS 

There  seems  to  be  a  growing  recognition  of  the  prac- 
tical wisdom  of  what  is  sometimes  known  as  "enhghtened 
selfishness."  This  idea  is,  to  a  certain  extent,  merely  an 
elaboration  of  the  old  adage  that  "Sugar  draws  more 
flies  than  vinegar. "  The  modern  way  of  putting  it  is  that 
if  you  want  to  do  a  big  business  you  have  to  give  people 
their  money's  worth;  if  you  want  to  make  people  feel  at 
home  in  your  place  of  business  you  have  to  give  them  a 
homelike  welcome;  if  you  want  to  get  the  most  out  of 
your  em_ployes  you  have  to  do  all  you  can  to  make  them 
take  an  interest  in  your  work,  by  making  their  work  pleas- 
ant and  profitable  to  them;  if  you  want  your  horse  to  do  a 
good  day's  work  you  must  give  him  plenty  of  corn. 

Like  other  great  ideas  this  one  is  making  its  way  in  the 
world  gradually.  People  are  not  willing  to  make  room  for 
it  all  at  once.  They  are  accustomed  to  reason  that  the 
horse  would  probably  not  miss  one  ear  of  corn.  But  they 
are  trying  the  new  idea  cautiously  —  with  something  of  the 
timidity  of  the  man  who  ate  the  first  oyster.  They  find  that 
it  is  wholesome,  and  then  give  it  a  more  extended  trial. 
And  so  it  happens  that  the  relations  of  employer  and 
employe,  buyer  and  seller,  producer  and  consumer,  are 
becoming  more  generous,  more  frank,  more  Uberal.  A 
better  business  spirit  is  springing  up  wherever  this  idea  is 
received  and  tried. 


130 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

A  THOUGHTLESS   WASTE 

Much  of  the  working  capacity  of  men  is  wasted  because 
their  superiors  keep  them  doing  Httle  things  that  are  far 
below  their  abihtv.  One  often  sees  grown  voung  men 
working  at  the  elbow  of  a  manager  and  being  employed  on 
errands  and  details  that  a  boy  might  do.  The  manager  is 
sometimes  merely  thoughtless  in  the  matter.  He  wants 
his  office-boy  work  well  done,  and  gives  it  to  a  man  to  do. 
A  manager  in  turn  often  receives  a  lot  of  little  nothings 
from  the  man  above  him,  which  he  must  attend  to  himself 
because  he  was  asked  to,  when  a  young  man  might  do  them 
just  as  well.  An  expert  is  often  asked  to  take  on  routine 
that  is  far  below  his  normal  plane  of  work  —  even  while 
others  are  being  deprived  of  growth  for  want  of  that  very 
work. 

It  is  true  that  details  are  often  very  important,  but  that 
is  no  reason  for  giving  a  man  a  boy's  work.  This  spirit  in 
an  organization  causes  a  great  waste  of  energy.  It  is  one 
of  those  expenses  that  do  not  show  on  the  ledger.  There 
is  no  account  entitled,  ''' AbiHty  paid  for  but  not  used, "  but 
there  are  hundreds  of  items  that  might  properly  be  entered 
under  that  head.  Employers  and  managers  may  well  bear 
in  mind  that  keeping  a  man  busy  all  the  time  does  not. 
necessarily  mean  getting  the  most  out  of  him.  Let  them 
rather  consider  the  more  valuable  things  he  might  be  doing. 


131 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

PREVENTING   TEMPTATION 

Every  business  house  ought  to  make  ample  provision 
to  protect  its  employes  from  temptation.  A  merchant  was 
showing  me  his  system  for  checking  out  goods.  Every 
piece  of  merchandise  and  every  transaction  had  to  pass 
through  several  hands.  It  would  have  been  most  difficult  to 
take  anything  without  detection. 

"How  do  your  employes  regard  the  system?"  I  asked. 

"Those  that  really  think  about  it  at  all  seem  to  appre- 
ciate that  it  is  a  protection  and  not  a  reflection  on  their 
honesty.  They  know  that  if  anything  should  be  taken, 
the  blame  would  be  fixed  on  the  right  person,  and  no 
breath  of  suspicion  would  attach  to  the  innocent." 

"  Do  you  have  much  trouble  ?"     I  asked. 

"Very  little.  The  system  discourages  any  thought 
of  taking  anything.  Occasionally  there  is  a  man  who 
might  be  tempted  if  he  thought  he  would  escape  detec- 
tion, but  this  system  helps  to  support  his  moral  sense. 
We  had  trouble  before  we  put  in  this  system.  Then  every- 
thing went  at  loose  ends,  and  although  we  missed  things 
we  were  unable  to  fix  the  blame.  We  finally  caught  two 
men  and  they  declared  that  they  never  would  have  started 
on  the  wrong  way  if  we  had  not  made  it  so  easy  for  them. 
The  constant  suggestion  caused  by  our  laxity  was  too  much 
for  them.  After  that  we  felt  it  our  plain  duty  to  install  a 
system  that  would  protect  any  such  men  from  temptation, 
as  well  as  to  exonerate  the  innocent  in  case  of  loss,  and  also 
to  protect  ourselves." 


132 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

FOLLOW   UP   YOUR   WORK 

Submitting  a  detail  to  a  superior  doesn't  lessen  your 
responsibilitiy  for  carrying  the  work  through  on  time  — 
unless  you  are  specifically  told  to  let  it  wait.  Many  a  time 
a  piece  of  work  is  delayed  by  someone  who  does  not  realize 
that  he  is  delaying  it,  and  who  would  gladly  do  his  part 
quickly  and  allow  the  work  to  proceed  if  the  matter  were 
only  called  to  his  attention.  Because  no  one  says  anything 
to  him  he  is  apt  to  assume  that  there  is  no  hurry,  even 
while  others  are  waiting  and  wondering  why  he  holds  it 
so  long. 

A  manager  called  one  of  his  assistants  and  asked  him 
the  cause  of  the  delay  in  getting  some  carpenter  repair 
work  done.  The  assistant  replied:  "I've  been  waiting 
for  you. " 

"How  so ? "  asked  the  manager. 

"You  said  to  show  you  the  letter  I  wrote  about  it,  and  I 
left  it  on  your  desk  several  days  ago." 

"  Why  didn't  you  ask  for  it  ?  I  didn't  see  it, "  said  the 
manager. 

When  a  search  was  made  for  it  the  letter  was  found 
covered  up  with  other  things  on  the  desk. 

"I  supposed  you  were  holding  it  for  some  reason," 
said  the  man. 

"No,"  said  the  manager.  "I  wasn't.  I  didn't  see 
it,  and  I  don't  hold  myself  responsible  for  the  delay.  It 
was  your  business  to  get  it  through  —  not  mine. " 


133 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

WASTING   TIME 

The  employe  who  is  inclined  to  waste  time,  whether 
by  arriving  late  in  the  morning,  by  quitting  actual  work 
before  closing  time,  or  by  unnecessary  inactivity  during  the 
intermediate  portions  of  the  day,  should  look  at  the  matter 
once  in  a  while  from  the  employer's  standpoint.  When 
this  is  done  fairly  and  squarely  there  will  be  less  murmuring 
because  of  any  strict  time  regulations  made  by  the  employer. 
And,  with  employes  who  are  conscientious,  there  will  be 
less  disposition  to  waste  time  by  tardiness  or  loafing. 

An  employer  recently  explained  to  me  just  how  the 
matter  looked  from  his  point  of  view. 

"Suppose,"  he  said,  "an  employe  wastes  ten  minutes  a 
day.  That  is  an  hour  a  week,  or  52  hours  a  year.  A  week 
with  us  has  fifty  working  hours  in  it.  So,  you  see,  the  man 
who  wastes  ten  minutes  a  day,  wastes  a  week  in  a  year. 
If  I  only  had  one  employe  I  might  not  mind  it,  but  as  I 
have  over  300  it  means  that  I  have  to  pay  for  300  weeks' 
service  that  I  don't  get.  And  furthermore,  ten  minutes' 
waste  of  time  is  a  very  low  estimate.  Many  a  fellow  punch- 
es his  time  on  the  clock  all  right,  prides  himself  on  his 
punctuaHty  record,  and  then  wastes  perhaps  an  hour  a  day 
idhng  around.  Loafing  is  more  or  less  contagious,  and  so 
the  idler  not  only  wastes  his  own  time  but  unconsciously 
influences  others  to  do  the  same." 


»34 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

BLUE  LAWS   UNNECESSARY 

In  a  certain  large  and  othenvisc  reputable  business 
office  there  is  a  rule  which  reads,  "  Employes  are  forbidden 
to  use  the  telephone  for  personal  business." 

It  is  not  difhcult  to  imagine  the  condition  of  adairs 
which  one  day  culminated  in  this  rule.  It  was  no  doubt 
framed  to  put  a  stop  to  an  overworked  habit  of  visiting  by 
telephone.  But  the  rule  is  too  drastic.  The  manager 
who  made  it  probably  thought  he  would  have  to  "treat 
them  all  alike. "  But  in  so  doing  he  has  made  the  many 
suffer  for  the  faults  of  the  few — and  has  thereby  impaired 
the  loyalty  of  every  one  of  his  employes. 

An  occasional  use  of  a  telephone  for  personal  calls  is 
often  a  matter  of  vital  importance  to  the  individual. 

Men  who  make  drastic  rules  should  realize  that  people 
have  their  lives  to  live  as  well  as  their  work  to  do. 

It  was  a  relief  to  find  that  another  large  firm  had  solved 
the  same  problem  with  this  sensible  rule : 

"The  use  of  the  telephones  for  long  and  unnecessary 
personal  conversation  by  employes  is  forbidden.  We 
readily  grant  the  privilege  of  using  the  telephone  for 
personal  matters  v/hen  it  seems  necessary,  but  insist  that 
the  privilege  be  not  abused." 


135 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

CRITICISING    SUPERIORS 

A  CORRESPONDENT  writes:  "Should  an  employer  be 
criticised  by  his  employes  among  themselves?  Does  not 
the  habit  of  criticising  superiors  beget  a  spirit  of  disloyalty 
among  employes,  and  so  cause  much  of  the  friction  they 
complain  about?  If  employes  would  speak  and  think 
kindly  of  those  above  them  in  authority,  and  have  some 
consideration  for  the  trials  and  annoyances  with  which 
executives  have  to  contend,  wouldn't  this  tend  to  create 
an  atmosphere  of  good  feeling  all  around?" 

My  answer  is,  yes.  Employes  are  too  prone  to  get  the 
notion  that  they  are  on  one  side  and  their  superiors  on  an- 
other. It  is  possible  to  magnify  the  shortcomings  of  a 
superior  until  they  seem  very  grievous.  And  when  a  num- 
ber of  employes  get  together  and  pool  their  ill  feelings  they 
often  get  worked  up  over  some  fancied  wrong,  and  are 
disposed  to  distort  every  motive  and  misinterpret  every  act 
of  the  man  above  them.  They  come  to  see  their  manager 
through  a  mental  fog  not  unlike  that  through  which  we 
are  often  obliged  to  view  the  opposing  political  candidate, 
be  he  saint  or  sinner. 

An  employe  and  his  superior  should  be  friends.  Be- 
tween friends  there  is  a  necessary  disposition  to  "  bear  and 
forbear,"  to  give  each  other  the  benefit  of  every  doubt,  to 
make  liberal  allowances,  and  to  be  friends  in  spite  of  differ- 
ences of  opinion.  Unforgiving  criticism  is  fatal  to  friend- 
ship. 


136 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

^VHAT   THE    EMPLOYER   DOESN'T   KNOW 

The  abuse  of  delegated  authority  occasions  much  injus- 
tice which  those  higher  in  power  do  not  always  realize. 
Many  things  are  done  by  subordinates  that  the  manager 
would  not   sanction. 

Near  closing  time  in  a  large  office  one  young  woman 
was  seen  crying  and  another  was  trying  to  comfort  her. 

"  What 's  the  matter,  Grace  ?  " 

"Oh,  Mr.  Thomas  said  I  had  to  work  again  to-night," 
she  sobbed.  'T  am  so  tired  I  can  hardly  think.  This 
makes  four  nights  this  week.  Last  night  I  was  here  till 
after  ten  o'clock,  and  then  got  scolded  this  morning  because 
I  was  a  few  minutes  late. " 

"Didn't  he  ask  if  you  were  willing  to  stay  ?  " 

"No,  he  didn't.  He  just  came  along  and  said, •*  We 
want  you  to  stay  and  help  to-night.' " 

"  Why  don't  you  speak  to  him  about  it  ?  " 

"I  did  that  once  and  he  made  it  so  unpleasant  for  me 
I  don't  want  to  ask  him  again." 

"Then  why  don't  you  go  and  tell  Mr.  Dodson  about 
it?" 

"That  would  be  worse  than  ever,  for  he  would  make  a 
fuss  and  Mr.  Thomas  would  take  his  grudge  out  on  me  for 
the  next  two  months.  If  Mr.  Dodson  would  only  look 
around  once  in  a  while  and  fmd  out  what  is  going  on  here, 
he  could  have  something  to  say  for  himself  without  wait- 
ing for  complaints." 


137 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

WHY   MISTAKES   ARE   MADE 

Mistakes  do  not  "happen"  —  they  are  the  results 
of  causes.  A  vast  measure  of  time,  money,  and  op- 
portunity is  lost  in  making  mistakes  and  trying  to  rectify 
them.  To  correct  mistakes  is  a  good  work,  but  to  prevent 
them  is  a  far  higher  achievement.  The  "ounce  of  preven- 
tion" may  be  appHed  by  carefully  considering  some  of  the 
chief  causes  of  errors  in  business.     They  arc : 

Carelessness,  inattention,  and  superficial  interest; 

Laziness — not  being  wiUing  to  take  the  trouble ; 

Accepting  appearances  as  facts  without  investigation; 

Proceeding  without  discussion  or  advice; 

Impulsive  decisions  not  well  thought  out; 

Lack  of  foresight  and  preparation; 

Wrong  theories  and  biased  advice; 

False  economy  and  desire  for  gain; 

Lack  of  tact  and  thoughtfulness; 

Forgetting  and  neglect  of  duty; 

Depending  on  those  not  properly  instructed; 

Failure  to  take  due  precautions; 

Failure  to  safeguard  weak  points; 

Overconfidence  and  exaggerated  hopes. 
The  remainder  may  be  charitably  classed  as  the  result 
of  human  frailty  —  a  last  resort  in  explaining  mistakes 
that  cannot  be  rectified  nor  traced  to  their  roots  in  un- 
developed character. 


138 


THOUGHTS        ON        B   U  S  I    N  !•:   S   S 


SELECTING   A   MAN 

Picking  out  the  right  man  for  the  place,  often  measures 
the  difference  between  success  and  failure  in  a  business. 
More  often  it  measures  the  difference  between  a  moderate 
success  and  a  phenomenal  one. 

Twenty  or  more  years  ago  a  carriage  factory  was  started 
with  the  idea  of  doing  things  in  an  original  way,  and  a  man 
was  chosen  to  carry  out  the  idea.  He  had  had  no  previous 
experience  in  that  line,  but  he  had  the  right  idea  and 
grasped  the  plan  enthusiastically.  The  work  began  on  a 
simple  scale  so  that  the  inexperienced  man  was  able  to  feel 
his  way.  The  business  grew  until  it  attained  great  pro- 
portions. The  same  man  is  still  at  the  head  of  it,  not 
as  the  owner,  but  as  the  manager.  He  proved  to  be  the 
right  man  for  the  place.  It  would  be  difficult  to  imagine 
how  he  might  have  made  the  business  more  successful  in 
that  particular  hne. 

In  thinking  of  this  the  thought  occurred  to  me,  sup- 
pose some  other  man  had  been  chosen  in  the  beginning. 
Suppose  he  had  had  wide  experience,  but  a  different  idea. 
He  might  have  made  more  rapid  progress  at  the  start,  or 
he  might  have  turned  the  whole  business  into  other  chan- 
nels and  have  given  it  a  different  character.  He  might 
not  have  been  able  to  grow  up  with  it,  or  might  have  left  it 
after  the  first  year's  trial.  The  present  greatness  of  the 
business  might  have  been  unknown  to-day  if  it  hadn't 
been  that  the  right  man  was  chosen  when  the  business  was 
small. 


139 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

MISSIONARIES   OF   REFINEMENT 

A  MAN  took  charge  of  an  office  in  which  he  had  been 
working  as  an  assistant.  The  force  was  composed  of  six  or 
eight  men.  The  first  move  of  the  new  manager  was  to  put 
a  young  woman  in  the  office.  In  speaking  of  the  matter 
he  said : 

"The  presence  of  a  woman  in  an  office  has  a  refining 
influence  on  the  men.  Our  men  have  grown  careless  in 
their  actions  and  conversation,  and  have  given  the  office  a 
spirit  of  coarseness  that  would  not  be  shown  if  a  woman 
were  present.  I  want  to  purify  the  general  atmosphere  of 
the  office,  and  I  know  no  better  way  than  to  have  a  refined 
young  woman  there." 

The  experiment  was  immediately  successful.  The 
character  of  the  convcH^sation  of  the  office  was  greatly  im- 
proved, a  tendency  to  mild  profanity  was  checked,  and 
coarse  jesting  was  felt  to  be  out  of  place.  The  young 
woman  sat  quietly  at  her  desk,  entirely  unconscious  of  the 
transformation  her  presence  was  causing.  Her  ladylike 
reserve  commanded  respect,  and  constantly  reminded  each 
man  of  the  necessity  of  being  a  gentleman. 

In  thousands  of  offices  the  same  refining  influence  is 
going  on.  More  is  due  to  the  presence  of  a  woman  in  the 
business  world  than  is  commonly  realized.  They  are 
missionaries  of  refinement,  and  deserve  credit  in  proportion 
as  they  perform  that  function  well. 


140 


WITH  THE  MANAGER 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   MANAGER'S   RESPONSIBILITY 

A  CORRESPONDENT  once  asked  me: 

"Why  do  you  write  so  much  about  what  the  manager 
ought  to  do?  Are  there  not  fauhs  among  the  employes 
that  need  correcting  also?" 

My  reply  was: 

Yes,  indeed,  there  are  many  faults  that  need  correcting 
among  the  employes  of  every  business.  But  the  most  im- 
portant ones  —  the  ones  that  need  correcting  first  —  are 
chiefly  those  for  which  the  manager  is  responsible,  either 
because  of  what  he  does  or  because  of  what  he  leaves 
undone.  He  may  not  always  be  to  blame  for  isolated 
instances,  but  for  wrong  conditions  he  is  usually  respon- 
sible. If  a  boy  is  sent  to  deliver  a  package,  and  the  cars 
are  blocked  so  he  cannot  reach  the  place  at  the  promised 
time,  neither  the  boy  nor  the  manager  is  especially  to 
blame.  But  if  a  firm  has  the  habit  of  being  late  in  keep- 
ing its  delivery  promises,  that  is  probably  the  manager's 
fault.  It  is  his  place  to  know  the  circumstances  and  see 
to  it  that  the  habit  of  delay  is  corrected.  To  undertake  to 
correct  such  conditions  by  outside  advice  to  the  employes 
would  be  as  useless  as  cutting  off  the  tops  of  Canada 
thistles  and  leaving  the  roots  in  the  ground. 

The  spirit  of  a  business  usually  takes  its  character  from 
the  man  at  the  head ;  and  the  same  is  true  of  the  various 
departments  and  divisions  of  a  business.  Wrong  condi- 
tions can  usually  be  traced  back  to  some  one  in  authority. 
So  it  is  at  the  top  that  reform  should  properly  begin. 


143 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

GOING   TO   HEADQUARTERS 

The  question  has  been  asked:  "Is  it  right  for  an 
employe  to  carry  a  complaint  over  the  head  of  one  of  his 
superiors  to  a  higher  officer  of  the  company  ?  " 

Yes  and  no.  What  is  right  in  a  general  way  may  not  be 
expedient  in  certain  cases,  therefore  not  wise,  hence  not 
right.  If  the  president  or  director  of  a  company  shows  a 
disposition  to  get  his  information  at  first  hand,  and  is  tact- 
ful enough  to  protect  his  informant  from  the  ill  will  of  the 
officer  against  whose  action  the  complaint  is  made,  it  may 
be  the  right  thing  to  do  .  But  if  he  is  prone  to  handle  the 
matter  in  an  untactful  manner  the  result  is  apt  to  be  a 
greater  discord  than  the  one  first  complained  of.  Much 
tyranny  is  often  exercised  by  under-officers  when  they  feel 
secure  that  no  information  will  be  passed  on  to  their  supe- 
riors except  through  themselves,  and  this  is  largely  obviated 
when  any  one  may  converse  freely  with  the  higher  officers. 
It  is  plain,  however,  that  too  much  freedom  in  this  respect 
would  greatly  impair  the  discipline  of  an  organization,  and 
bring  about  a  worse  condition  than  might  otherwise  exist. 
The  value  of  a  rule  along  this  line  depends  largely  on  the 
character  of  the  individuals  involved.  In  general  it  would 
seem  well  for  the  superior  officer  to  be  on  easy  speaking 
terms  with  any  employe  concerning  things  which  affect 
that  employe.  If  there  is  no  injustice  going  on,  the  inter- 
mediate officers  have  nothing  to  fear,  and  should  be  wilHng 
to  let  everything  be  open  and  above  board. 


144 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

DON'T   BE   TOO    NECESSARY 

A  manager's  value  to  a  business  is  not  always  in  pro- 
portion to  the  influence  of  his  personal  presence.  Some- 
times the  ability  to  leave  a  business  for  a  time  and  have  it 
go  on  as  smoothly  as  ever  is  the  best  test  of  a  man's  control 
over  it. 

A  factory  manager  was  taking  an  extra  hour  away 
from  his  work  one  noon,  and  remarked  to  a  friend,  with 
apparent  pride: 

"I  must  be  going  back,  or  everything  will  be  at  a 
standstill.  I  can't  leave  the  shop  for  two  hours  without  it 
causing  a  difference  in  the  work.  It  doesn't  take  long  for 
things  to  be  going  at  loose  ends  unless  I  am  right  there  to 
watch  them. " 

This  man,  trying  indirectly  to  raise  himself  in  his 
friend's  estimation,  was  really  confessing  his  own  weakness 
and  laying  bare  his  secret  misconception  of  the  functions  of 
a  manager.  The  humor  of  the  situation  is  apparent  when 
we  remember  that  many  of  the  owners  and  managers  of 
vast  business  estabHshments  are  able  to  be  absent  from 
their  offices  for  weeks  and  even  months  at  a  time. 

The  good  organizer,  unless  he  is  limited  to  very  poor 
material,  is  usually  the  man  who  makes  his  own  personal 
presence  less  and  less  of  a  necessity  to  the  harmonious 
working  of  the  system. 


145 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

HANDLING   MEN 

How  to  get  the  best  work  out  of  the  men  is  a  many- 
sided  problem  for  every  manager,  foreman,  or  employer. 
Like  the  farmer  who  gets  thirty  bushels  of  poor  corn  out  of 
land  that  might  produce  eighty  bushels  of  good  corn,  the 
employer  needs  to  look  well  to  the  undeveloped  possibilities 
of  his  organization.  Whatever  throws  light  on  this  great 
problem  is  always  a  matter  of  keen  interest  to  the  thorough 
business  man. 

In  a  conversation  with  the  manager  of  a  foundry  —  a 
man  who  had  worked  up  from  a  mechanic — he  said: 
"  Some  years  ago  I  worked  in  a  great  manufacturing  plant, 
and  my  work  brought  me  in  contact  with  all  the  foremen. 
I  took  advantage  of  the  opportunity  to  study  their  methods 
cf  handling  men,  and  often  discussed  the  subject  with 
them.  One  old  and  successful  foreman  with  several  hun- 
dred men  in  his  department  once  told  me  his  secret.  He 
said,  'Give  a  man  a  job,  tell  him  what  you  want,  and  then 
go  away  from  him.  Don't  stand  and  watch  him,  but  let 
him  work  it  out.  If  you  think  it  necessary  to  watch  a  job 
go  to  work  with  the  men.'  I  have  since  tried  this  and  find 
it  of  value." 

Many  of  the  most  effective  methods  worked  out  by 
various  managers  arc  based  on  the  clew  here  suggested — a 
recognition  of  the  importance  of  considering  the  feelings  of 
the  men  as  a  factor  in  their  work. 


146 


THOUGHTS       ON       BUSINESS 

TALK  IT  OVER 

Much  good  may  be  done  by  a  frank  heart-to-heart  talk 
between  employer  and  employe.  I  knew  a  young  man 
who  was  nearly  everything  a  young  man  should  not  be  — 
lazy,  careless,  indifferent,  and  insincere.  The  time  came 
when  he  was  to  be  discharged.  But  the  manager  did  not 
discharge  him.  He  gave  him  instead  a  plain  heart-to-heart 
talk — not  a  mere  scolding,  but  a  friendly  talk,  full  of  kind- 
ness and  solicitude  for  his  welfare.  The  young  man  was 
deeply  touched,  and  was  aroused  to  see  his  folly  and  to 
appreciate  his  opportunities.  He  began  all  over  again, 
with  new  motives,  new  energy,  and  new  hope.  And  now 
he  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  and  progressive  men  in  the 
employ  of  that  concern. 

This  case  is  only  one  of  a  miUion.  Nearly  every  suc- 
cessful man  can  look  back  and  see  where  just  such  a  talk 
came  between  him  and  failure.  Many  a  career  has  been 
turned  in  the  right  direction  by  a  talk  of  that  kind. 

Do  you  ever  talk  this  way  to  the  men  working  under 
your  authority  ?  You  can  help  them  very  much  if  you 
will — ^and  they  will  thank  you  for  it. 


147 


THOUGHTS        ON       BUSINESS 

THE  FRIENDLY   MANAGER 

An  open  friendship  between  employer  and  employe  — 
the  individual  friendship  between  a  manager  and  each  of 
his  men —  is  of  great  value  to  a  business.  It  begets  a  loy- 
alty that  nothing  else  can.  A  man  once  said  to  me,  "  When- 
ever I  feel  a  little  blue  I  go  and  have  a  talk  with  Mr.  Smith, 
and  I  come  out  feeling  fine.  We  may  not  talk  about  what 
I  had  in  mind,  but  I  feel  encouraged  just  the  same." 

I  had  often  heard  of  Mr.  Smith's  success  with  his  busi- 
ness and  with  his  men,  and  this  seemed  a  fair  explanation 
of  that  success.  Such  an  interchange  of  friendly  confi- 
dence brings  out  the  best  there  is  in  the  men  —  or  shows 
what  they  lack.  It  enables  a  manager  to  get  in  touch  with 
the  ruling  motives  of  his  men,  and  to  learn  how  each  indi- 
vidual should  be  treated  in  order  to  get  the  best  results. 
In  other  words,  it  enables  him  to  consider  intelligently  the 
personal  equation. 

Men  are  like  the.keys  on  a  piano:  you  can  get  musi(!;  or 
discord  out  of  them  accordii^  to  the  way  you  play  upon 
them.  It  is  refreshing  to  observe  the  growing  recognition 
of  this  fact,  and  to  see  how  oppression  is  decreasing  in 
order  that  spontaneity  may  be  utilized.  It  is  good  to  know 
that  it  pays  to  be  friendly,  and  thac  the  business  world  is 
rapidly  finding  this  out. 


148 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   TOUCH   OF   POWER 

In  handling  men  it  is  important  to  appreciate  the  degree 
to  which  they  respond  to  a  word  or  look.  It  is  commonly 
admitted  that  the  knowledge  of  how  to  handle  men  is  a 
great  business  asset.  And  how  else  are  they  to  be  dealt 
with  except  by  words,  and  thoughts,  and  attitudes,  and 
hints,  and  all  those  Httle  things  by  which  men  come  to 
understand  each  other. 

A  word  of  appreciation  for  work  well  done,  a  word  of 
caution  for  unseen  danger,  a  word  of  helpful  criticism  for 
faulty  work,  a  word  of  advice  in  time  of  uncertainty,  a  word 
of  encouragement  when  the  spirit  is  low — these  are  impor- 
tant things  in  dealing  with  men.  The  manager  who  neg- 
lects them  or  deems  them  unimportant  is  greatly  mistaken 
as  to  the  functions  of  a  manager,  no  matter  how  great  are 
his  capacities  in  other  lines. 

Some  managers  are  too  prone  to  expect  the  very  best  re- 
sults and  yet  not  appreciate  them  when  they  get  them. 
Even  when  these  results  have  been  worked  out  under  ex- 
treme difficulties  and  inconveniences,  there  is  often  no  word 
of  recognition  of  the  fact.  The  thoughtless  omission  of 
the  right  word  at  the  right  time,  even  if  it  be  but  a  single 
word,  may  make  a  great  difference  in  the  subsequent  spirit 
of  the  employe.  Men  feel  the  effects  of  the  words  and  atti- 
tude of  the  men  above  them  just  as  the  big  locomotive  re- 
sponds to  the  engineer's  touch  at  the  throttle  lever.  It  is 
highly  important  that  every  touch  be  the  right  one  at  the 
time. 


149 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

WEIGH   YOUR   WORDS 

Few  men  in  authority  really  appreciate  the  effect  of 
their  casual  words  upon  those  working  under  their  direc- 
tion. 

I  recall  an  incident  which  is  typical  of  the  carelessness 
of  some  men  who  have  a  measure  of  authority  over  others. 
A  young  man  had  worked  hard  all  forenoon  arranging  a 
stock  of  merchandise.  Filled  with  enthusiasm,  and  crav- 
ing a  word  of  approval,  he  showed  his  work  to  his  superior. 
"See,  Mr.  Smith,  I  've  done  all  that  since  nine  o'clock." 
And  this  was  Smith's  cruel  and  untactful  reply:  "Pshaw, 
boy!     You  ought  to  have  done  twice  that  much. " 

Think  what  a  rare  specimen  of  manhood  it  would 
have  taken  to  withstand  such  a  blow!  Being  merely  hu- 
man, the  poor  young  man  could  only  grit  his  teeth  and 
mutter. 

No  sensible  person  would  hit  a  delicately  adjusted 
typewriter  a  blow  with  a  hammer  and  expect  it  to  go  on 
performing  its  work  correctly.  The  mental  mechanism  of 
men  and  women  is  even  more  delicate  and  requires  more 
careful  contact  than  most  managers  and  co-workers 
realize. 


ISO 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

SHOW  YOUR  APPRECIATION 

Men  need  a  word  of  encouragement  now  and  then  just 
as  much  as  they  need  food.  For  as  food  is  to  the  body,  sc 
is  encouragement  to  the  mind  and  heart.  A  worker  who 
is  discouraged  is  not  half  a  man.  And  even  the  most  hb- 
eral  compensation  cannot  take  the  place  of  a  word  of  appre- 
ciation and  encouragement  given  in  the  right  spirit  at  the 
right  time. 

"That  is  a  good  job,  Henry,"  said  a  business  man  to 
his  clerk,  who  had  just  finished  ruling  a  book  for  him.  And 
the  young  man  threw  himself  into  his  work  with  renewed 
energy  and  interest.  The  man  never  knew  how  much  that 
slight  word  of  approval  meant  to  the  clerk,  nor  how  much 
it  added  to  his  enthusiasm. 

Men  and  women  crave  the  assurance  that  their  work 
is  meeting  with  satisfaction.  To  withhold  that  assurance 
when  it  is  due  is  not  merely  poor  business  policy  — it  is  an 
injustice.  Part  of  the  compensation  of  every  worker  is  the 
satisfaction  of  knowing  that  he  is  accomplishing  something 
and  to  withhold  that  satisfaction  is  often  more  grievous 
than  to  hold  back  money  duly  earned. 

More  and  more  must  those  in  authority  in  business 
recognize  the  human  element  in  men  and  women — the 
part  the  heart  plays  in  the  work.  It  is  possible,  of  course, 
to  say  too  much  to  a  man,  giving  him  an  over-elated 
sense  of  his  value  —  but  the  tendencv  seems  rather  in  the 
other  direction ;  men  do  not  get  encouragement  enough. 


151 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

GIVE   CREDIT  FOR   THE   BEST 

It  usually  pays  to  treat  a  man  according  to  the  best 
there  is  in  him.  A  certain  mechanic  was  regarded  as 
quarrelsome  and  incompetent.  The  foreman  and  the 
other  workmen  treated  him  accordingly — and  to  them  he 
always  seemed  to  live  and  act  the  part  of  a  most  disagree- 
able man. 

Finally  he  got  a  position  in  another  shop  where  his  old 
reputation  was  not  allowed  to  follow  him.  The  foreman 
treated  him  with  courtesy  and  respect,  calling  him  "Mr. 
Daniels"  instead  of  "Bob,"  and  gave  him  credit  for  being 
a  first-class  workman.  Every  latent  power  of  his  manhood 
expanded  to  meet  this  better  estimate  of  himself,  and  he 
soon  became,  in  fact  as  well  as  in  theory,  a  competent  work- 
man with  a  normal  disposition — one  of  the  best  in  the  shop. 

The  fact  was,  the  foreman  knew  of  the  man's  reputa- 
tion, but  refused  to  build  on  the  old  foundation.  He 
established  a  better  estimate  of  the  man,  and  gave  him  an 
opportunity  to  live  up  to  it. 

Do  you  know  the  men  about  you  by  the  best  there  is 
in  them,  or  by  the  worst?  Try  giving  them  credit  for 
all  they  might  be,  and  sec  them  respond  to  your  estimate. 


152 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


THE   BANE   OF  FEAR 

Thousands  of  men  and  women  are  living  in  constant 
fear  of  losing  their  positions.  It  is  good  to  know  that  in 
most  instances  this  fear  is  groundless.  But  until  this  fact 
is  known  to  the  worker  he  is  just  as  unhappy  as  if  the  dan- 
ger were  real  —  perhaps  more  so  than  if  he  actually  had 
been  dismissed. 

This  fear  is  so  blighting  in  its  effects,  so  detrimental  to 
good  work,  that  employers  and  managers  and  all  with  any 
degree  of  authority  in  business  should  take  every  reasonable 
precaution  to  remove  it  from  the  minds  of  employes. 
When  necessary  to  quiet  the  thought  of  a  fearful  employe, 
it  is  sometimes  well  for  the  superior  to  come  right  out  with 
the  assurance  and  say,  "  Don't  be  afraid  of  losing  your  po- 
sition with  us.  We  need  you  and  are  depending  on  you  to 
help  us  carry  on  this  business."  Such  an  assurance  is  of 
untold  value  to  a  worker,  not  only  to  his  peace  of  mind  but 
also  to  his  work  itself. 

Some  employers  and  managers  try  to  rule  their  men  by 
purposely  keeping  them  in  fear  of  losing  their  positions. 
Such  a  poHcy  is  nothing  short  of  cruelty.  A  manager  who 
knowingly  does  that  has  no  moral  right  to  hold  authority  at 
all.  This  policy  should  be  utterly  condemned  wherever 
found.  It  may  sometimes  be  done  ignorantly,  but  the 
effect  is  the  same  as  if  done  from  cruel  motives. 

Let  every  sincere  worker  feel  the  satisfaction  of  know- 
ing that  his  efforts  are  appreciated,  and  that  he  is  not  to  be 
cast  aside  at  the  whim  of  anv  man. 


153 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

GOLDEN   EGGS 

Spontaneity  is  the  goose  that  lays  the  golden  eggs. 
Many  men  managing  a  business  or  a  part  of  a  business  — 
usually  a  part  —  think  they  can  kill  the  goose  and  get  all 
the  eggs  at  once.  But  the  results  are  in  accordance  with 
the  ancient  tradition. 

Did  you  ever  see  a  manager  who  drove  his  men  so  they 
muttered  as  they  went  about  their  work  ?  Did  you  notice 
that  their  spontaneity  was  at  a  low  ebb?  Did  you  see 
them  watch  the  clock,  and  count  the  minutes  till  closing 
time  ?  Did  you  hear  them  talking  behind  his  back  ?  Did 
you  see  them  hiding  the  facts  from  him  ?  And  did  you  see 
any  golden  eggs? 

Again,  did  you  ever  see  a  manager  who  gave  his  men 
credit  for  being  men  —  who  expected  much  of  them,  left 
much  to  them,  and  let  them  feel  his  confidence  in  them  — 
who  governed  by  ideals  instead  of  by  fear?  And  did 
you  see  the  enthusiasm  with  which  his  men  worked? 
Did  you  see  the  intelligent  interest  they  took  in  every 
detail?     There  's  where  you  saw  the  golden  eggs. 

Maybe  you  are  some  sort  of  a  manager  yourself. 
Which  kind  of  a  manager  arc  you  ? 


IS4 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   FROST  THAT   BLIGHTS 

A  man's  progressiveness  is  often  measured  by  the  way 
he  receives  a  suggestion  from  an  employe. 

A  salesman  in  a  hardware  store  said  to  one  of  the  man- 
agers, "Don't  you  think  it  would  be  a  good  idea  to  cut  a 
door  through  that  wall  ?  We  have  the  same  kind  of  goods 
on  both  sides,  and  have  to  go  all  the  way  up  to  the  other  end 
every  time  we  want  to  get  through. " 

"Well,"  drawled  the  manager,  "I  guess  if  we  can  afford 
to  pay  you  for  your  time,  you  can  afford  to  take  the  trouble 
to  walk  around  there.  You  sell  the  goods,  young  man,  and 
I  '11  decide  when  to  tear  down  the  walls. " 

About  three  months  later  the  young  man  had  so  far  for- 
gotten the  sting  of  the  former  rebuff  that  he  grew  bold 
enough  to  make  one  more  suggestion. 

"If  we  had  a  medium  size  of  this  wrapping  paper  I 
think  it  would  save  a  good  many  sheets  of  this  large  size  in 
the  course  of  a  day." 

"You  think  so?  Well,  you  attend  to  your  customers 
and  we  '11  try  to  provide  enough  paper  to  wrap  the  goods  up 
in." 

What  a  wholesome  atmosphere  to  work  in!  How  it 
must  unfold  the  buds  of  original  thought  —  like  the  gentle 
spring  rain  falHng  on  the  grass  and  trees,  or  the  warm  sun- 
shine that  brings  out  the  apple  blossoms!  Or  —  but  may 
be  it 's  only  a  cruel  frost  that  kills  the  flowers. 


155 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

FORSAKING   THE   POINT 

Fear  of  disfavor  often  holds  back  valuable  information. 
A  manager  should  let  his  employes  feel  free  to  stick  to  a 
point  in  opposition  to  himself  when  they  know,  or  feel  cer- 
tain they  know  that  they  are  serving  his  best  interests  in  do- 
ing so. 

A  railroad  clerk,  handling  the  proofs  of  a  new  time-card 
came  to  a  mark  indicating  a  stop  which  he  felt  sure  was  not 
intended.  When  he  took  the  matter  to  the  manager  he  re- 
ceived scant  attention,  and  was  told  the  point  was  all  right 
as  it  stood.  The  clerk  returned  to  his  work  and  let  the 
matter  go.  A  few  days  later,  when  the  new  time-card  was 
in  operation,  the  error  was  discovered,  and  the  matter  came 
again  to  the  manager.  He  remembered,  with  chagrin, 
that  his  attention  had  been  called  to  it  before  the  card  was 
printed.  Wishing  to  justify  himself,  he  sent  for  the  young 
man,  and  said: 

"Didn't  you  call  my  attention  to  this  point?" 

"  Yes,  sir, "  said  the  young  man. 

"What  did  you  back  down  for?"  asked  the  manager. 

"You  didn't  seemed  incHned  to  pay  any  attention  to  it, 
and  there  was  nothing  else  for  me  to  do, " 

"Well,"  said  the  manager,  "don't  ever  do  that  again. 
If  you  find  a  point  like  that,  make  sure  you  are  right,  and 
then  come  to  me  and  stick  to  it  until  I  see  it  your  way. " 


156 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

MOVE   ON  AHEAD 

There  are  two  principal  ways  for  a  manager  and  his 
assistant  to  work  together.  One  kind  of  a  manager  works 
very  hard  himself  and  does  not  leave  much  of  importance 
for  his  assistant  to  do.  The  other  kind  lets  his  assistant  do 
all  he  can  while  he  resen'es  his  own  time  and  thought 
chiefly  for  things  the  assistant  cannot  do  —  at  least,  can 
not  do  so  well.  He  puts  responsibility  on  his  assistant 
just  as  fast  as  the  assistant  shows  his  ability  to  take  it. 

The  first  manager  retards  his  own  growth  and  that  of 
his  assistant.  He  is  always  overworked  and  has  httle  or  no 
time  to  think  of  new  things.  He  is  often  doing  work  that 
should  have  been  done  several  days  before.  His  assistant 
either  chafes  under  the  restraint,  or  concludes  that  he  is 
incompetent,  and  settles  into  a  dull  mediocrity. 

The  second  manager  has  time  and  opportunity  to  grow, 
and  gives  his  assistant  room  to  grow.  The  assistant  feels 
his  own  strength,  and  loves  his  work.  He  shoulders  the 
responsibility  with  eagerness,  and  the  work  goes  merrily  on. 

Ask  yourself,  which  is  best. 


157 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

SNAP   JUDGMENT 

Offhand  decisions  are  sometimes  productive  of  much 
mischief.  Men  who  have  the  authority  to  say  "  Go  ahead  " 
do  not  ahvays  reahze  the  importance  of  their  decisions. 
In  talking  over  the  plans  for  a  mercantile  building  the 
question  of  locating  the  central  station  for  the  pneumatic 
tube  system  came  up.  One  man  took  a  pencil  and  marked 
off  a  space  on  the  plans  for  it.  Nobody  offered  an  objec- 
tion and  the  point  was  considered  as  decided  in  about  two 
minutes.  In  due  time  the  plans  were  drawn,  the  tubes 
were  laid,  and  the  station  installed.  This  took  about  two 
months,  and  cost  thousands  of  dollars.  Later  when  the 
system  was  in  use,  it  was  found  that  the  noise  of  the  central 
station  was  such  a  constant  disturbance  to  the  nearby 
offices  that  the  station  had  to  be  removed  to  another  part 
of  the  buildino;. 

Every  business  has  such  experiences.  Questions  of 
procedure  come  up  and  quick  decisions  are  given  on  slight 
evidence.  Sometimes  the  decision  is  understood  to  be  un- 
debatable  —  it  is  yes  or  no,  and  that  settles  it. 

The  wise  manager,  while  appreciating  quickness,  never 
secures  it  at  the  expense  of  thoroughness  when  it  involves 
a  decision  upon  which  a  course  of  events  depends.  And 
usually  his  decisions  are  open  to  argument  from  his  lieu- 
tenants to  make  sure  that  all  sides  of  the  question  are  care- 
fully considered. 


158 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   CAREER   OF   A   MAN 

An  employer  once  said  to  an  employe  who  wanted  to 
leave  him  and  take  a  better  position  with  a  rival  house : 

"I  cannot  allow  my  biased  business  interests  to  counsel 
you  at  this  time.  It  is  too  great  a  responsibility  for  me  to 
influence  the  course  of  a  man's  career.  What  you  do  at 
this  point  may  affect  your  whole  life.  You  are  welcome 
to  stay  with  us,  and  you  are  as  welcome  to  go  —  I  won't 
urge  or  advise." 

Not  every  employer  would  take  that  stand,  ]Many 
would  think  so  much  of  their  own  interests  that  they  would 
talk  a  man  out  of  taking  advantage  of  the  opportunity  of 
his  life.  But  nothing  is  gained  by  such  methods.  When 
a  bird  is  really  hatched  it  does  no  good  to  try  to  keep  the 
shell  around  it  a  while  longer. 

Another  employer,  under  similar  circumstances,  said: 
"If  it  were  merely  a  matter  of  money,  I  would  pay  you  as 
much  as  the  other  concern  will;  but  I  think  there  is  a  good 
future  for  you  in  that  place,  and  I  advise  you  to  take  it." 

Another  said:  "I  know  of  a  good  opening  for  a  man 
like  you  There  isn't  much  ahead  of  you  here,  and  while 
I  should  hate  to  lose  you  I  can't  refrain  from  teUing  you  of 
such  a  good  opportunity." 

Perhaps  the  future  will  bring  more  of  such  friendly 
relations  between  employe  and  employer  —  a  keen  interest 
in  the  welfare  of  the  individual  worker  aside  from  imme- 
diate business  advantage. 


159 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

DISCHARGING   A   MAN 

It  is  a  serious  thing  to  discharge  a  man  —  it  may  change 
his  whole  career.  And  it  is  often  a  positive  injustice,  as 
well  as  a  business  mistake,  to  discharge  a  man  in  a  fit  of 
temper. 

A  department  head  in  a  mercantile  house  came  to 
the  superintendent  and  said:  "I  want  your  permission  to 
discharge  that  man  right  away  —  ri^ht  on  the  spot. " 
The  superintendent,  noticing  that  the  man  was  angry,  said : 
"You  are  mad  now.  Just  cool  off  before  you  do  anything. 
Come  back  tomorrow  and  see  me  and  let  me  know  if  you 
still  wish  to  discharge  him.  If  you  do  you  have  my  per- 
mission." 

The  next  day  the  man  came  back  to  the  superintendent 
and  said :  "You  were  right  yesterday.  I  don't  want  to  lose 
that  man.  He  did  all  I  said  he  did,  but  it  was  only  a  mis- 
understanding. We  talked  it  out,  and  I  see  how  it  was.  I 
might  have  made  the  same  mistake  myself.  I  believe  that 
man  is  as  earnest  as  any  man  in  the  department,  and  I 
want  to  keep  him." 

That  is  a  good  rule  for  every  man  in  authority — wait 
until  you  cool  off.  Don't  take  a  step  when  you  are  angry 
that  may  harm  another  man.  In  such  a  state  of  mind  it  is 
impossible  to  think  correctly  about  a  case,  and  any  view 
you  might  take  of  it  would  perhaps  be  distorted.  Nothing 
is  lost  by  waiting  a  while  and  talking  it  over  with  another 
person. 


i6o 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   DISTURBING   ELEMENT 

All  unnecessary  friction  should  be  eliminated  from  a 
business  for  the  sake  of  the  business  and  the  people  con- 
nected with  it.  It  is  demoralizing  to  spend  one's  life  in 
an  atmosphere  of  continual  discord,  and  it  is  also  poor  busi- 
ness. No  worker  can  do  his  best  under  such  conditions. 
If  employers  could  estimate  in  money  what  portion  of  the 
pay  roll  is  paid  out  in  exchange  for  time  and  energy  that 
are  consumed  by  unnecessary  friction  it  would  place  good 
nature  at  a  high  premium. 

In  speaking  of  this  the  proprietor  of  a  large  business 
remarked :  "I  have  figured  it  out  as  a  plain  business  prin- 
ciple that  I  can't  afford  to  keep  in  my  employ  a  man  who 
proves  to  be  a  disturbing  element.  Years  ago  I  saw  that 
most  friction  in  business  can  be  traced  down  to  a  few  indi- 
viduals who  are  cross  and  ill-natured,  and  upset  most  of 
the  people  around  them.  I  have  seen  more  misery  caused 
by  a  rude  foreman  or  a  sarcastic  workman  than  by  almost 
anything  else.  So  we  have  a  rule  which  gives  the  chronic 
scold  an  opportunity  to  reform  or  resign.  We  have  had  to 
lose  some  capable  men,  some  of  them  high  up  in  the  organ- 
ization, but  I  think  we  have  gained  by  the  loss.  It  may  be 
hard  on  the  individuals,  but  it  is  certainly  a  boon  to  those 
around  them  whose  lives  were  made  miserable  by  their  ill 
nature.    We  have  very  little  friction  now." 


i6i 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

"LET   US" 

Sometimes  a  man  who  occupies  a  position  of  authority 
devotes  his  energies  not  so  much  to  building  up  the  busi- 
ness as  to  intrenching  himself  in  it.  He  tries  to  make  him- 
self indispensable,  not  by  learning  to  do  some  things  better 
than  any  one  else,  but  by  keeping  others  from  learning  the 
whole  plan. 

Such  a  man  gathers  information  from  all  sources,  but 
keeps  it  to  himself.  He  undertakes,  we  will  say,  to  build  a 
wagon.  He  does  not  say  to  his  lieutenants,  "Let  us  build 
a  wagon. "  But  he  keeps  the  idea  and  the  plan  to  himself, 
and  says  to  one  man,  "  Make  me  a  wheel, "  and  to  another, 
"Make  me  an  axle, "  and  to  another,  "Make  me  a  tongue," 
and  so  on.  He  does  not  let  his  right  hand  man  know  what 
his  left  hand  man  is  doing.  He  alone  knows  how  to  build 
the  wagon,  or  that  a  wagon  is  being  built. 

Perhaps  his  employers  will  say:  "Mr.  Smith  is  a  very 
smart  man;  he  is  the  only  man  we  have  who  knows  how  to 
build  a  wagon."  Some  day  they  may  learn  that  no  one 
else  knew  how  to  build  a  wagon  because  Mr.  Smith  used  his 
authority  to  keep  others  from  knowing  the  whole  plan  of 
the  work. 

How  much  better  to  say  to  the  men:  "Let  us  build  a 
wagon;  let  us  make  the  wheels  in  this  manner,  and  the 
axles  in  that. "  Then  the  knowledge,  skill  and  executive 
ability  are  spread  out  to  develop  the  men  and  the  business. 


162 


rii   OUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

HOLD    YOUR   TEMPER 

The  time  must  come  when  no  man  will  be  called  great 
until  he  is  a  gentleman.  I  stood  one  day  near  the  door  of 
the  private  office  of  a  "great"  manufacturer.  A  boy  who 
had  been  sent  to  the  files  returned  and  handed  him  a  paper. 
It  was  the  wrong  date.  The  manufacturer  had  asked  for 
"Thursday  the  1 7th, "  and  the  boy  had  brought  "Thursday 
the  i6th"  —  the  man  was  wrong.  It  v/as  the  "  17th"  that 
he  really  wanted.  As  soon  as  he  had  been  given  the 
v/rong  copy  the  "great  man"  flew  into  a  rage  and  actually 
swore  at  the  boy  —  a  volley  of  epithets  and  ugly  remarks. 
The  boy,  crushed  and  saddened,  went  and  got  the  paper 
wanted. 

I  learned  afterwards  that  this  "great "man  goes  through 
a  similar  performance  with  any  of  his  employes  on  the 
slightest  provocation. 

Such  a  man  causes  untold  misery  and  is  a  bhght  on  the 
lives  of  those  around  him.  He  should  never  have  authority 
over  others,  no  matter  how  "great"  he  may  be  in  other 
ways.  The  time  may  come  when  such  men  will  find  it 
impossible  to  get  others  knowingly  to  work  for  them  at 
any  price.  Something  should  be  done  to  check  the  jugger- 
naut of  brutal  temper  that  it  may  not  be  driven  with  the 
force  of  business  authority  over  the  lives  and  hearts  of  the 
world's  patient  workers. 


163 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   MANLY  APOLOGY 

There  is  something  noble  about  a  manly  apology. 
This  is  especially  true  when  a  business  superior  frankly 
admits  to  a  man  under  him  that  he  was  mistaken  in  his 
criticism. 

The  manager  of  an  office  had  taken  occasion  to  reprove 
severely  one  of  his  clerks  for  what  seemed  to  him  a  suffi- 
cient reason.  He  had  accused  the  clerk  of  carelessly  neg- 
lecting an  important  request  he  had  made  the  day  before. 
The  clerk  did  not  remember  the  request,  and  could  not 
successfully  deny  that  he  had  been  told.  The  manager 
dwelt  at  length  on  the  clerk's  inefficiency  and  made  an 
unpleasant  experience  for  both. 

On  the  following  day  the  manager  discovered  among 
his  papers  his  original  memorandum,  showing  that  he  had 
not  spoken  to  the  clerk  about  the  matter  at  all.  He  im- 
mediately called  the  clerk  and  made  a  manly  acknowledg- 
ment of  his  own  mistake  and  withdrew  his  criticism. 

I  wonder  how  many  business  men  there  are  who  would 
have  done  the  same  thing.  Would  not  many  of  them  have 
kept  the  facts  to  themselves  and  let  the  criticism  stand? 
Such  a  man  thinks  the  clerk  would  not  remember  —  so 
why  belittle  himself?  But  the  clerk  does  remember.  He 
feels  the  injustice  keenly,  and  marks  down  his  respect  for 
the  manager,  just  as  he  surely  marks  it  up  when  the 
wrong  is  righted  by  a  manly  apology.  Self-respect  de- 
mands that  a  man  shall  apologize  for  an  unjust  ac- 
cusation. 


164 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

IMPERSONAL   CRITICISM 

Personal  appearance  is  a  subject  upon  which  much 
might  be  said,  but  upon  which  little  is  said.  Most  men 
in  authority  in  business  hesitate  to  speak  to  employes  about 
such  things  for  fear  of  giving  offense.  A  manager  who  feels 
free  to  criticise  any  detail  of  the  work  of  his  men  seldom 
feels  that  he  can  bring  himself  to  tell  a  man  that  his  shoes, 
his  nails,  or  his  linen  need  attention.  Much  less  does  he 
feel  free  to  criticise  women  employes  on  such  matters.  And 
so  it  happens  that  in  almost  every  business  house  there  are 
those  who  daily  give  offense  to  others  by  such  neglect,  and 
where  these  persons  meet  the  public  there  is  distinct  harm 
to  the  business  itself.  There  ought  to  be  some  way  to 
cover  this  point  effectively  without  giving  undue  offense. 

One  method  is  to  post,  where  all  employes  may  see  it, 
a  notice  something  like  this: 

"Employes  must  understand  that  a  reasonable  stand- 
ard of  personal  appearance  and  personal  cleanliness  is  re- 
quired of  all.  Those  who  give  offense  to  others  through 
neglect  of  these  matters  will  be  subject  to  dismissal. " 

Another  method  sometimes  used  is  to  put  in  the  pay 
envelope  of  those  needing  such  advice  an  impersonal 
letter  or  notice  mentioning  in  a  general  way  the  necessity 
of  recognizing  proper  standards. 


165 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

^P— Mi—— — »^l— »— Wl— »»-^— l^— ^— — ^—      11  ■  '  ^^i^W^MMMM  ■■  '  we.    !■        I !■■      ■    ■!      ■    MIMIIM     IM  ■  .IIIM—I     I  Mini  — f^«m 

THE   SCRUTINY   OF   DETAIL 

Details  are  often  of  more  importance  than  they  seem 
to  be  —  some  of  them  are  far-reaching.  I  once  visited 
a  large  restaurant  where  everything  was  perfectly  appoint- 
ed, from  the  white  linen  to  the  appetizing  food.  But  the 
knives  and  forks  were  ponderous  —  the  largest  I  had  ever 
seen  —  too  large  for  convenient  and  graceful  use. 

In  trying  to  ligure  out  how  such  a  mistake  had  been 
made  —  so  out  of  keeping  v/ith  the  other  features  of  the 
place  —  I  could  come  to  but  one  conclusion:  The  matter 
had  not  been  given  proper  attention  when  the  selection 
was  made.  The  proprietor,  being  a  man  of  large  affairs 
and  accustomed  to  passing  details  on  to  his  lieutenants, 
probably  considered  the  selection  of  knives  a  mere  detail, 
and  left  it  to  others  —  and  so  the  matter  was  superficially 
inquired  into,  or  passed  upon  by  some  one  who  had  very 
poor  judgment. 

It  is  well  to  be  broad  minded  enough  to  leave  details  to 
assistants;  but  it  is  important  to  make  sure  that  intelli- 
gent scrutiny  is  brought  to  bear  upon  all  details  that  are 
to  be  multiplied.  And  it  is  well  to  classify  as  details 
only  things  that  are  so  limited  that  they  can't  go  very  far 
wrong. 


i66 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

COMMON   SENSE   PERFECTION      . 

The  right  standard  for  work  is  perfection.  We  may 
not  attain  it,  but  we  should  come  as  near  it  as  we  can. 
And  certainly  v/e  should  not  be  satisfied  to  pass  over  ob- 
vious imperfections  which  may  be  readily  corrected. 

I  have  actually  seen  instances  where  a  stenographer 
divided  words  in  the  middle  of  syllables  at  the  end  of  a 
line,  and  was  allowed  to  go  on  doing  that  sort  of  work  for 
over  a  year.  I  pitied  the  girl  for  having  such  an  employer, 
but  I  pitied  more  the  man  who  had  been  signing  her  letters, 
and  whose  standard  was  so  low  that  he  was  content  to 
pass  such  work  as  satisfactory.  A  man  who  is  careless  in 
such  things  is  sure  to  be  careless  in  practically  everything. 
And  for  such  a  spirit  to  permeate  a  business  house  through 
the  example  of  those  in  authority,  is  an  injustice  to  every 
employe,  and  to  the  pubhc  at  large. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  spHt  hairs  —  that  'sthe  other  ex- 
treme. But  there  is  a  wholesome  standard,  practical  per- 
fection, which  should  be  the  universal  rule  of  every  sincere 
worker. 


167 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

PROFITABLE  REFORMS 

Many  worthy  reforms  are  being  made  quietly  through 
the  rules  of  business  houses.  Men  of  purpose  who  are  in 
authority  in  business  houses  should  not  overlook  the  oppor- 
tunity thus  afforded.  As  almost  every  wrong  habit  affects 
the  tone  of  a  business  or  the  capacity  of  the  individual,  it  is 
possible,  without  stepping  beyond  the  simple  bounds  of 
business  propriety,  to  curtail  many  evils  and  thus  render 
a  distinct  service  to  society. 

An  instance  worthy  of  note  may  be  found  in  the  rule  of 
a  certain  large  store  which  prohibits  the  use  of  chewing 
gum  by  employes  while  on  duty.  The  good  effect  of  this 
rule  is  not  merely  in  breaking  the  repulsive  habit  among 
several  hundred  employes,  but  in  the  example  it  affords 
to  other  concerns,  and  in  the  stigma  it  places  upon  one  of 
the  most  unrefined  and  inexcusable  habits  that  ever  gained 
ground  with  thoughtless  persons.  Further  than  this,  it 
brings  to  the  attention  of  many  parents  the  idea  of  prevent- 
ing the  habit  among  children. 

As  a  further  evidence  of  the  business  value  of  such  rules 
may  be  mentioned  the  fact  — well  known  among  successful 
salesmen  —  that  the  use  of  chewing  gum  and  tobacco  is  so 
offensive  to  some  customers  that  they  hesitate  to  transact 
business  with  salesmen  who  use  them  in  their  presence. 


i68 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

LET   THE   BOY   DO   IT 

Don't  spend  your  valuable  time  doing  work  that  you 
might  teach  the  office  boy  to  do.  Once  I  saw  a  man  sitting 
at  a  big  mahogany  desk  ruling  some  sheets  of  paper.  In 
the  next  room  sat  a  restless  boy  with  nothing  to  do.  And 
nearby  was  a  stenographer  who  appeared  busy  but  who 
was  really  writing  "Now  is  the  time,"  etc.  In  the  course 
of  our  conversation  the  man  made  the  usual  complaint  of 
being  "so  busy  he  didn't  have  time  to  think." 

"Why  don't  you  give  that  boy  some  of  your  work?"  I 
asked. 

"Oh,"  said  the  man,  "he  couldn't  do  this  the  way  I 
want  it  done. " 

"Then  why  don't  you  show  him  how  ?" 

"Oh,  I  haven't  time  —  that  would  take  longer  than  to 
do  it  myself." 

Too  busy  to  think!  Surely  something  was  preventing 
him  from  thinking.  I  could  see  that  the  case  was  typical 
—  he  was  that  way  about  everything.  And  there  are  many 
like  him. 

You  never  know  how  great  a  help  a  bright  boy  can  be 
until  you  take  the  trouble  to  teach  him  how  to  help  you. 


i6c) 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

RUNNING   DOWN   AN   ERROR 

■  In  talking  with  a  successful  business  manager  the  sub- 
ject of  correcting  errors  came  up.      I  asked  him :  "How  do 
you  treat  an  employe  when  you  find  that  he  has  made  a 
mistake?" 

"It  depends  on  the  employe,"  he  said,  "and  on  the 
nature  of  the  mJstake.  I  have  a  great  deal  more  leniency 
for  a  mistake  due  to  ignorance  than  for  one  due  to  care- 
lessness. But  I  do  not  believe  in  abusing  an  employe  for 
a  mistake.  I  take  the  attitude  that  it  is  a  serious  thing, 
and  that  doubtless  he  regrets  it  very  much.  I  don't  try  to 
smooth  it  over,  but  let  his  own  self-conviction  be  his 
punishment." 

"And  what  about  correcting  it?" 

"Usually  I  require  him  to  look  into  the  matter  and 
report  to  me,  and  show  me  just  exactly  how  the  mistake 
happened.  He  usually  knows  that  point  better  than  any- 
one else  can  tell  him.  I  question  him  quietly  until  he  ad- 
mits that  it  was  just  because  he  let  it  go,  or  because  he 
assumed  some  point  without  investigation,  or  some  such 
reason.  Nearly  every  mistake  can  be  traced  back  to  some 
lapse  in  thinking.  When  the  real  reason  is  brought  to 
light  we  talk  it  over  as  the  occasion  warrants,  and  I  make 
sure  that  he  corrects  the  underlying  thought  which  gave 
occasion  for  the  error.  This  gives  fair  assurance  that  a 
similar  mistake  will  not  occur  again.  That  is  better  than 
mere  scolding." 


1-70 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

BREAKING   THE   NEW   MAN   IN 

When  a  new  man  begins  work  in  an  office  or  a  depart- 
ment he  is  often  left  to  shift  for  himself  without  an 
outline  of  his  duties  or  an  introduction  to  those  around 
him.     It  is  good  to  hear  what  a  young  man  told  me. 

"When  I  began  here,"  he  said,  "the  manager  of  this 
department  talked  things  over  with  me  for  nearly  an  hour. 
He  told  me  the  names  of  all  the  officers  of  the  firm,  and 
.what  they  did,  the  names  of  all  the  heads  of  the  depart- 
ments I  would  come  in  contact  with,  the  names  of  the 
other  people  here  in  the  office,  the  names  of  the  leading 
houses  we  did  business  with,  and  gave  me  a  good  general 
idea  of  the  work  of  the  whole  office  and  a  special  outhne 
of  my  duties  and  possibilities  here.  Then  he  took  me 
around  and  introduced  me  to  many  of  these  people.  The 
result  was  that  I  quickly  got  my  bearings  and  felt  at  home 
from  the  first,  and  soon  settled  down  to  hard  work.  In 
my  previous  position  with  another  firm  my  experience  was 
very  different.  There  were  no  introductions,  and  no  out- 
line, and  no  general  information.  My  first  three  months 
were  practically  spent  learning  what  the  manager  could 
have  told  me  in  an  hour  if  he  had  taken  the  trouble  to  do  it. 
The  work  here  is  twice  as  complicated  as  it  was  there,  but 
I  got  the  general  plan  of  it  well  in  mind  the  first  day. " 

Every  manager  should,  for  the  moment,  put  himself  in 
the  place  of  the  new  employe  and  realize  what  a  confused 
sense  he  must  have  of  a  large  and  unfamiliar  business,  and 
how  easily  that  confusion  could  be  taken  away  by  a 
good  talk  about  the  work  in  general. 

.■171 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

ENJOYING  LIFE  AS  YOU  GO 

Once  in  a  while  we  find  a  business  man  who  takes  a 
decidedly  refreshing  view  of  business  life.  Such  men  give 
us  an  idea  of  what  the  general  business  life  might  be  if  we 
had  better  standards. 

"  You  seem  inclined  to  surround  yourself  with  beautiful 
things, "  I  remarked  to  a  business  man,  as  I  stood  in  his 
charming  ofiice- studio  and  cast  an  appreciative  glance  at 
the  exquisite  pictures,  odd  pottery,  oriental  rugs,  dull 
mahogany,  and  artistic  lighting  eflfects. 

"Well,  I  try  to,"  he  said.  "Years  ago  I  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  I  should  probably  have  to  spend  the  best 
part  of  my  life  sitting  in  an  office,  and  I  made  up  my  mind 
that  I  would  make  my  office  a  livable  place.  If  I  am  ever 
going  to  get  any  enjoyment  out  of  the  beautiful  things  of  life 
it  will  have  to  be  when  I  am  awake,  and  that  usually  means 
while  I  am  working  right  here  in  this  office. " 

"Do  you  get  much  time  to  enjoy  these  treasures?"  I 
asked,  as  I  examined  in  detail  some  rare  bindings,  Japa- 
nese prints  and  cabinet  pieces. 

"Not  as  much  as  I  should  like,"  he  said,  "but  enough 
to  make  it  worth  while.  And  the  mere  fact  of  having  them 
at  hand  gives  me  some  pleasure,  and  helps  to  keep  my 
working  standards  up,  whether  I  have  much  time  to  look  at 
them  or  not. " 


172 


THOUGHTS        ONBUSINESS 

A  NEW  BROOM 

When  a  man  takes  charge  of  an  office  or  a  department 
he  invariably  cleans  out  an  accumulation  of  things  which 
are  more  or  less  worthless,  and  makes  a  number  of  changes 
which  are  obviously  needed.  It  is  the  old  story  of  the 
new  broom  that  sweeps  clean.  Why  should  not  the  present 
incumbent  assume  for  a  time  the  role  of  a  new  manager 
and  make  such  changes  as  his  successor  might  make  ? 

Think  what  a  novel  experience  it  would  be  to  come 
down  to  the  office  some  morning  with  all  the  fresh  enthusi- 
asm of  a  new  manager.  Put  yourself  squarely  in  his  place. 
Regard  yourself,  up  to  yesterday,  as  your  own  predecessor. 
Criticise  the  laxity  of  that  predecessor  with  all  the  sternness 
you  might  employ  if  he  happened  to  have  another  name 
than  your  own.  Make  no  excuses  for  him  or  for  his  meth- 
ods and  accumulations.  Get  an  entirely  new  view  of  the 
situation,  and  outline  the  policy  you  mean  to  pursue.  If  you 
need  a  new  desk,  get  one.  If  you  need  a  new  cabinet,  get 
one.  If  you  know  a  better  way  to  organize  the  work,  do  it. 
If  your  attitude  toward  those  about  you  has  been  too  re- 
served or  too  familiar,  change  it.  Do  everything  with  the 
spirit  in  which  you  might  take  a  new  position, —  with  the 
added  assurance  and  knowledge  of  conditions  which  expe- 
rience has  given  you.  Perhaps  this  is  just  the  change  you 
need. 


173 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

OPEN  THE   CHANNELS 

A  WIDE-AWAKE  open-eyed  force  of  employes  is  one  of 
the  greatest  assets  a  business  can  have.  Some  business 
houses  encourage  employes  to  make  suggestions  in  the 
interests  of  a  business,  both  by  making  it  known  that  such 
suggestions  are  always  welcome,  and  by  offering  money 
rewards  for  such  ideas  as  may  be  accepted. 

This  is  an  excellent  spirit,  and  one  which  should,  in 
some  measure,  permeate  every  business  house.  It  allows 
the  humblest  v/orker  to  feel  that  he  can  have  a  voice  in  the 
conduct  of  the  business  if  he  can  furnish  an  idea  that  is 
v/orth  acting  upon.  If  he  thinks  he  would  do  such  and 
such  things  if  he  were  in  authority,  he  has  the  privilege  of 
having  it  done  —  if  his  idea  is  considered  a  good  one.  After 
all,  it  is  the  idea  that  really  rules,  and  whoever  furnishes 
an  idea  upon  which  any  phase  of  a  business  is  conducted 
may  have  the  satisfaction  of  feeling  that,  in  that  degree, 
he  has  a  part  in  the  management  of  the  business. 

In  those  establishments  where  this  rule  is  in  force, 
where  all  employes  are  encouraged  to  express  their 
thoughts  to  the  management  in  regard  to  any  part  of  the 
business,  it  has  been  found  that  even  the  least  of  the 
employes  may  make  valuable  suggestions  which  the 
managers  had  not  thought  of., 


174 


BUYING  AND  SELLING 


t  ho  ughts      on      business 
ci\t:lization  advanced  by  the  seller 

An  English  merchant  was  visiting  the  United  States 
for  the  purpose  of  gathering  American  ideas  to  infuse  into 
his  business.  When  he  showed  an  interest  in  the  adding 
machine  in  use  in  my  office  I  asked  him  if  he  had  them  in 
his  estabhshment.  No,  he  had  none.  "This  machine," 
I  said,  examining  the  metal  plate,  "was  invented  twenty 
years  ago.  How  do  you  account  for  the  fact  that  you  never 
bought  one?"  He  rephed,  "I  suppose  it  is  because  the 
manufacturer  never  tried  to  sell  us  one. " 

I  thought  of  the  improvements  which  had  been  intro- 
duced into  every  line  of  business  within  the  last  twenty 
years  —  improvements  in  machinery,  enough  to  stir  the 
dullest  imagination  —  improvements  in  system,  method, 
manufacture,  merchandise,  custom,  organization,  and 
everything  —  because  somebody  had  something  to  sell,  and 
had  argued  down  every  outgrown  tradition  and  prejudice 
that  stood  in  his  way,  and  had  made  a  place  for  his  product 
among  the  equipment  of  the  world.  I  saw  the  inventor, 
the  maker,  the  seller,  the  advertiser,  in  their  true  light  as 
substantial  benefactors  of  the  human  race.  Civilization 
owes  much  to  the  man  who  has  something  to  sell. 


177 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   SALESMAN'S   WORK 

The  salesman  who  comes  to  your  office  to  do  business 
with  you  sometimes  has  far  less  courtesy  accorded  him 
than  is  due  his  attainments.  There  is  a  feeling  among 
some  men  that  all  salesmen  are  more  or  less  bothersome 
fellows  who  try  to  sell  you  something  you  don't  want.  And 
there  is  an  element  of  snobbery  in  the  attitude  of  some  buy- 
ers —  a  feeling  that  the  salesman  belongs  to  a  lower  order 
because  he  solicits  business.  This  attitude  is  unjust. 
There  may  be  salesmen  who  do  not  merit  the  highest 
measure  of  respect,  but  that  is  the  fault  of  the  individual 
and  not  of  the  profession.  But  there  are  salesmen  who 
are  worthy  of  the  fullest  measure  of  courtesy  and  respect, 
first  because  they  are  gentlemen,  and  next  because  they 
are  business  men,  and  next  because  they  are  performing 
one  of  the  most  vital  functions  of  society. 

The  most  helpful  invention  ever  made  would  hardly 
have  its  proper  influence  on  civilization  unless  there  were 
competent  salesmen  to  champion  its  rights,  expose  the 
fallacies  of  older  methods,  and  tear  down  the  stone  wall 
of  prejudice  with  which  the  average  buyer  surrounds  him- 
self. Many  of  the  most  civilizing  influences  would  fail  to 
reach  the  people  unless  there  were  salesmen  capable  of 
clearing  the  way  for  them.  The  very  channels  of  com- 
mercial progress  are  opened,  not  by  inventors  and  not  by 
manufacturers,  but  by  salesmen.  Give  the  salesmen  the 
honor  due  his  place  in  the  world's  work. 


178 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   GOODS   BEHIND   THE   MAN 

A  MAN  once  made  the  remark  to  me  that  he  could 
always  tell  a  proposition  by  its  salesman.  In  talking  with 
an  experienced  buyer  in  a  mercantile  establishment  I 
mentioned  this  point  to  him,  and  asked  him  if  that  had 
been  his  experience. 

"No,  indeed,"  he  answered.  "Aly  observation  has 
often  been  the  reverse.  I  have  seen  a  very  poor  salesman 
with  a  splendid  proposition,  and  an  exceptionally  good 
salesman  with  a  poor  proposition." 

"How  do  you  account  for  it?"  I  asked. 

"Well,"  he  said,  "in  my  business  I  am  always  on  the 
lookout  for  new  things.  I  find  that  a  great  many  good 
things  are  first  put  on  the  market  in  a  small  way,  and  often 
necessarily  in  a  most  economical  way.  A  small  manufact- 
urer can  seldom  afford  an  expert  salesman  —  he  must 
cither  go  himself  or  send  a  man  he  can  afiford  to  employ. 
That  frequently  means  a  man  who  has  never  sold  goods 
before.  So  if  I  should  judge  the  proposition  by  the  sales- 
men I  would  often  turn  down  a  good  thing.  I  'd  rather 
examine  thirty  things  I  don't  want  than  to  miss  one  I  do. " 

"  Don't  you  think  a  good  many  buyers  make  a  mistake 
there?"  I  asked. 

"Yes,  indeed,"  he  said.  "One  of  the  best  lines  I  con- 
trol was  turned  down  by  a  rival  without  proper  investi- 
gation, obviously  because  the  old  man  that  invented  it 
came  in  himself  to  sell  it." 


^79 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

COURTESY   DRAWS   BUSINESS 

The  effects  of  courtesy  are  often  very  great.  A  small 
merchant  once  entered  a  great  wholesale  house  and  asked 
to  buy  a  certain  kind  of  brush.  It  was  not  in  stock.  He 
said  it  was  a  special  purchase  for  one  of  his  customers,  and 
asked  if  it  could  be  procured.  The  salesman  thought  of 
the  trouble,  and  turned  the  request  aside  with  scant  court- 
esy. 

The  merchant  then  tried  another  wholesale  house. 
The  brush  was  not  in  stock,  neither  did  the  salesman  know 
where  it  was  to  be  had,  but  he  courteously  offered  to  make 
the  effort  to  procure  it.  Some  days  later  the  merchant 
received  the  brush.  He  was  so  pleased  with  the  courteous 
manner  in  which  his  request  had  been  cared  for  that  he 
opened  further  business  relations  with  the  house,  and  soon 
transferred  his  account  from  the  other  concern,  and  gave 
his  business  where  it  was  more  noticeably  appreciated. 
Years  passed,  and  the  merchant  prospered  greatly,  until 
his  purchases  from  that  house  amounted  to  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  dollars  a  year. 

We  may  not  all  have  hundred-thousand-dollar  custom- 
ers in  humble  disguise  making  requests  of  us,  but  similar 
results,  differing  only  in  degree,  are  a  natural  reward  of 
unselfish  courtesy.  It 's  the  old  story  of  the  sugar  and  the 
flies. 


i8o 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

"SOME  AN  HUNDREDFOLD" 

It  is  a  matter  of  continual  interest  to  see  how  big  things 
often  grow  from  small  beginnings.  A  salesman  in  a  store 
went  to  a  great  deal  of  trouble  to  get  a  certain  kind  of  but- 
ton I  wanted,  an  item  worth  only  five  cents.  I  was  much 
impressed  with  the  spirit  in  which  he  took  the  trouble  to 
satisfy  such  a  small  demand,  and  I  said  to  him,  "You  are 
certainly  very  kind." 

" Not  at  all, "  he  said.     "That 's  what  I  am  here  for. " 

"I  'm  afraid  your  business  doesn't  grow  very  fast  from 
orders  like  that,"  I  said. 

"  Perhaps  not,"  he  said,  "if  you  count  only  the  profit  on 
the  first  transaction.  But  I  have  seen  a  great  deal  of 
business  grow  out  of  smaller  things  than  that.  I  can  count 
ten  good  customers  who  came  on  the  recommendation  of 
one  man  I  once  went  to  a  little  extra  trouble  for.  And  I 
found  two  of  my  best  friends  among  the  newcomers.  It 
is  often  that  way.  A  man  drops  in  here  and  is  well  treated, 
and  mentions  it  to  his  friends  and  they  mention  it  to  theirs, 
and  so  business  grows.  It  is  like  planting  a  grain  of  wheat. 
It  may  bring  forth  a  whole  head,  and  that  planted  again 
will  bring  a  head  for  every  grain,  and  so  on.  You  can  never 
tell  where  it  will  stop.  I  Hke  to  think  that  every  little 
transaction  is  a  grain  of  wheat  that  I  am  planting,  and  that 
it  is  worth  all  the  trouble  it  costs,  for  it  may  bring  in  a  big 
harvest  some  day." 


i8i 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

DON'T    JUSTIFY   A    DEFECT 

To  excuse  a  fault  to  save  the  trouble  of  correcting  it  is 
always  a  dangerous  policy.  A  salesman  with  this  habit 
was  the  means  of  turning  the  entire  tide  of  business  away 
from  his  house.  The  concern  he  represented  had  a  practi- 
cal monopoly  —  at  least  a  lion's  share  —  of  a  certain  kind  of 
art  work.  A  number  of  the  largest  customers  were  han- 
dled by  this  salesman.  When  the  designs  were  submitted 
for  approval  before  finishing  the  work,  the  buyers  would 
suggest  changes  and  corrections  to  be  made.  The  sales- 
man found  it  easier  to  argue  against  the  alterations  and 
pretend  that  there  were  technical  reasons  for  having  the 
design  as  it  was.  The  deference  which  men  of  good  judg- 
ment usually  pay  to  technical  knowledge  often  caused  the 
buyers  to  concede  the  claims  of  the  salesman.  His  success 
in  "talking  them  into  it"  caused  the  habit  to  grow  upon 
him  until  he  would  oppose  every  suggestion  for  a  change 
or  correction.  The  buyers  finally  got  tired  of  arguing  with 
him,  and  one  by  one  they  began  to  deal  with  a  rival  concern. 
Within  three  months  after  the  first  step  was  taken  the 
original  concern  had  lost  practically  all  its  large  customers 
in  that  line,  and  the  rival  house  was  serving  them. 

The  patient  correction  and  improvement  of  detail  is  the 
highway  to  perfection.  To  shirk  the  task  will  undermine 
success  in  any  line. 


182 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

TACTFUL  DEALING 

A  FAVOR  granted  graciously  is  of  double  value.  Islany 
persons  overlook  this,  and  if  they  grant  favors  at  all  it  is 
only  after  being  beaten  at  haggling,  so  they  get  no  credit 
for  it,  and  leave  an  unpleasant  feeling  in  the  mind  of  the 
other.  If  you  intend  eventually  to  grant  a  request,  do  so  at 
once,  and — do  it  graciously. 

A  man  bought  a  house  coat  at  a  furnishing  goods  store, 
and  when  it  was  delivered  at  his  home  he  noticed  that  the 
collar  had  in  some  way  become  soiled.  He  was  very  much 
wrought  up,  and  took  it  to  the  store,  intending  to  demand 
his  money  back,  and  vowing  he  would  not  trade  there 
again.  The  salesman  to  whom  the  coat  was  returned  saw 
instantly  that  it  should  not  have  been  sent  out  that  way, 
and  instead  of  trying  to  convince  the  customer  that  it  was 
all  right  —  as  others  might  have  done  —  he  said : 

"We  thank  you  very  much,  Mr.  Smith,  for  calling  our 
attention  to  this.  It  is  certainly  not  as  it  should  be,  and 
we  are  very  sorry  to  have  given  you  any  trouble  because  of 
our  oversight.  We  shall  be  glad  to  hav^e  you  make  another 
selection,  or  if  you  prefer  this  one  we  can  have  it  nicely 
cleaned  and  returned  to  you  to-day." 

The  customer  was  so  completely  taken  by  surprise  that 
he  quickly  forgot  his  hostile  feelings,  and  the  matter  was 
soon  adjusted  to  his  entire  satisfaction.  The  slightest 
reluctance  on  the  salesman's  part  might  have  brought  on 
an  unpleasant  experience  for  both. 


183 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

A   HINT   TO    SALESMEN 

The  salesman  who  follows  up  his  customers  too  closely 
makes  a  big  mistake.  It  is  comparatively  easy  to  smooth 
over  a  quarrel,  or  to  adjust  a  misunderstanding,  but  it  is 
seldom  easy  to  patch  up  a  threadbare  welcome. 

"  One  thing  that  puts  a  salesman  in  a  bad  light  with 
me,"  said  a  business  man,  "is  to  give  me  an  estimate  and 
then  come  around  about  six  times  a  week  to  inquire  'what 
is  being  done  about  that  matter.'  A  fellow  tried  that  on 
me  not  long  ago,  and  came  in  so  many  times  I  had  to  tell 
him  to  keep  out.  I  said,  'See  here.  Smith,  you  gave  me  that 
estimate  last  Tuesday,  and  you  have  been  in  here  every  day 
since.  I  told  you  at  the  time  I  would  let  you  know  when  I 
was  ready  to  talk  to  you  further.  Now  if  you  will  let  the 
matter  rest  there  till  I  get  through  talking  it  over  with  our 
own  people  who  are  interested  in  it,  your  proposition  will 
get  as  good  a  hearing  as  anybody's.  But  if  you  come  in 
here  again  punching  me  up  about  it  I  will  simply  give  you 
back  your  estimate  and  count  you  out  of  it.'  " 

"Isn't  that  a  rather  extreme  measure?"  I  asked. 

"Well,  maybe,"  he  admitted.  "But  you  might  not 
think  so  if  you  had  several  over-anxious  salesmen  nag- 
ging you  every  time  you  tried  to  investigate  their  house's 
goods, " 


284 


THOUGHTS        ON       BUSINESS 

COMMON   SENSE   IN  SELLING 

One  morning  I  stopped  at  a  fruit  stand.  I  was  in 
just  the  frame  of  mind  in  which  I  didn't  v/ant  anything  in 
particular  but  wished  to  buy  something  if  I  saw  anything 
that  appealed  to  me.  But  the  instant  I  began  looking  at 
the  fruit  the  old  man  came  up  and  began  pointing  to  this, 
that,  and  the  other,  not  giving  me  a  moment  to  think  for 
myself.  I  simply  turned  and  walked  off  —  probably  as 
thousands  had  done  before  me.  I  was  willing  to  buy  goods 
but  not  willing  to  have  goods  sold  to  me.  And  I  went  away 
disappointed  at  not  having  the  privilege  of  looking  over 
the  stock. 

This  same  spirit  in  some  degree  perv^ades  almost  every 
line  of  business.  The  men  who  own  the  business  may 
know  better,  but  they  fail  to  impress  the  point  upon  their 
salespeople,  and  the  result  is  the  same  as  at  the  fruit  stand. 
Many  who  are  willing  to  be  customers  turn  away  when 
they  are  denied  the  privilege  of  looking  over  the  goods  and 
forming  their  own  impressions. 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  there  are  many  who  desire 
immediate  attention,  and  go  away  if  they  don't  get  it. 
There  is  a  happy  medium  between  these  two  extremes  that 
is  an  important  point  in  successful  retail  salesmanship. 


185 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


KNOW  YOUR   GOODS 

It  stands  to  reason  that  a  salesman  should  know  thor- 
oughly the  goods  he  expects  to  sell.  I  went  into  a  station- 
ery store  to  buy  a  certain  kind  of  letter  file.  The  salesman 
fumbled  around  a  few  minutes  and  then  said  the  article 
was  not  in  stock.  As  the  file  I  wanted  was  one  of  the  most 
common  of  its  kind,  and  as  staple  for  a  stationery  store  as 
sugar  or  salt  for  a  grocery,  I  insisted  that  he  must  have  it. 
He  looked  in  two  more  places  and  then  called  another  sales- 
man, who  went  to  a  shelf  not  two  feet  from  the  place  where 
he  had  looked,  and  brought  out  just  the  article  I  wanted, 
with  a  variety  to  choose  from. 

Tliis  sort  of  thing  happens  every  day  m  nearly  every 
store.  Sales  are  lost  and  customers  are  disappointed  be- 
cause salespeople  don't  know  their  stocks. 

Stock-keeping  ought  to  be  thoroughly  classified.  When 
you  look  up  a  word  in  the  dictionary  you  don't  hunt  in  sev- 
eral places.  You  find  the  letter  it  begins  with,  and  the 
next  and  the  next,  and  you  can  soon  tell  to  a  certainty 
whether  it  is  in  the  dictionary  or  not.  A  stock  of  merchan- 
dise naturally  falls  into  classes,  and  each  class  falls  into 
subdivisions.  If  a  salesman  had  an  outline  of  the  stock, 
and  then  would  come  systematically  in  touch  with  every 
variety,  he  could  soon  know  perfectly  every  kind  of  pen, 
pencil,  envelope,  paper,  or  blank  book  in  even  the  most 
complicated  stationery  stock. 


i86 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

WHILE   OTHERS   WAIT 

It  is  unquestionably  wrong  to  waste  another  man's 
time  if  you  can  help  it.  Some  men  who  are  in  position  to 
make  others  wait  for  them  do  not  always  appreciate  this 
fact. 

"Many  a  time,"  said  a  salesman  recently,  "I  lose  the 
very  heart  of  the  day  waiting  around  to  see  some  buyer  who 
doesn't  care  anything  about  my  time.  Just  the  other  day 
I  called  to  see  a  man  of  that  kind,  and  it  took  over  an  hour 
out  of  the  best  part  of  the  forenoon  just  to  learn  that  he 
would  prefer  to  see  me  the  next  day.  I  was  one  of  four 
men  waiting  outside  his  private  office  while  he  was  talking 
with  a  fifth.  When  we  had  been  there  some  time  the  door 
opened  and  the  other  man  started  to  go.  As  he  stood 
with  one  hand  on  the  knob  making  a  few  parting  remarks, 
the  buyer  said,  'By  the  way,  did  you  ever  hear  that  one 
about  the  Irishman  and  the  horse  ?'  The  other  evidently 
hadn't  heard  it,  for  he  went  in  again  and  closed  the  door 
and  didn't  come  out  for  fifteen  minutes.  And  while  they 
enjoyed  that  story  and  doubtless  several  more  like  it,  we 
four  were  waiting  —  and  the  fact  was  plainly  known. 
When  I  finally  got  in,  after  waiting  from  half- past  ten  till  a 
quarter  of  twelve,  I  was  told  that  it  was  too  near  noon  to 
take  the  matter  up,  and  that  I  could  come  in  to-morrow 
and  he  would  see  me." 


187 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSIN  ESS 

CALLING   ON   KING   DODO 

One  of  the  best  compliments  you  can  pay  to  a  man  of 
authority  in  business  is  to  say  that  he  is  "approachable. " 
The  time  is  passing  when  a  man  may  sit  in  state  in  a  pri- 
vate office  while  his  employes  tiptoe  around  outside  to  ar- 
range with  his  secretaries  for  an  audience,  and  tremble  at 
the  knees  when  they  go  in.  People  are  getting  too  enlight- 
ened for  that  sort  of  thing.  It  reminds  them  too  much 
of  the  comic  opera  king  who  sits  in  tinsel  splendor  and 
waves  a  sceptre  of  painted  pine. 

But  there  is  another  reason  for  the  spread  of  business 
democracy.  Men  are  finding  out  that  high-mightiness 
hurts  business.  They  are  learning  that  the  impetus  of  a 
great  business  pushes  aside  every  obstacle  that  would  im- 
pede its  progress.  The  man  who  clogs  the  wheels  is  the 
first  to  get  hurt.  The  machinery  of  events  is  a  greater 
force  than  the  whim  of  an  individual.  And  so  the  lessons 
of  common  sense  are  being  driven  home  to  us  all.  A  sure 
way  to  reach  a  man  is  through  his  business.  And  it  is 
through  the  necessities  of  business  that  many  of  the  best 
ideas  of  civilization  come. 

Business  demands  that  the  different  workers  —  presi- 
dents, managers,  foremen  and  employes  —  co-operate  with- 
out inconvenience,  delay,  red  tape,  or  nonsense.  That  is 
one  reason  why  men  in  authority  are  becoming  more  ap- 
proachable. 


x88 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   PINK   TAPE   ON   THE   CELERY 

A  FARMER  noticed  customers  in  the  grocery  store  pick- 
ing over  the  celery  to  find  the  best  looking  bunches,  and  it 
occurred  to  him  to  take  more  pains  with  his  celery  and  see 
if  it  would  bring  a  better  price.  He  bought  a  bolt  of  pink 
tape  for  one  cent  a  yard  and  tied  the  celery  with  it  in  neat 
bunches,  and  found  that  it  sold  quickly  and  brought  more 
money,  while  the  same  kind  of  celer}''  without  the  tape, 
placed  right  beside  it,  sold  slowly  and  brought  less. 

After  that  he  marketed  all  his  produce  in  the  most 
attractive  manner  he  could,  putting  labels  on  his  peach 
baskets  with  the  name  of  the  variety,  wiping  his  apples, 
selecting  and  labeling  liis  grapes  —  always  treating  his 
fruit  and  vegetables  as  if  they  were  worthy  of  distinction. 
The  fame  of  his  produce  grew,  he  enlarged  his  business, 
and  became  a  wealthy  man  —  all  because  of  the  pink  tape 
on  the  celery. 

It  is  human  nature  to  concede  distinction  where  others 
ascribe  it,  and  many  a  business  has  prospered  greatly 
because  of  a  recognition  of  this  fact.  If  your  celery  is 
worthy  of  the  honor,  put  some  pink  tape  on  it,  and  it 
will  meet  a  response  from  those  who  desire  the  best.  But 
don't  overdo  the  tape  —  don't  try  silk  ribbon  —  or  the 
effect  is  lost. 


189 


THOUGHTS        ON       BUSINESS 

THE    PERCENTAGE    BASIS 

The  advantage  of  considering  comparisons  by  percent- 
ages is  often  overlooked  by  business  men.  A  great  mer- 
chant, noticing  this  tendency  among  his  buyers  and  de- 
partment managers,  gave  them  a  talk  on  the  subject  to 
impress  them  with  its  importance.  His  line  of  argument 
was  as  follows: 

A  man  buys  a  piece  of  merchandise  for  $500  and  sells  it 
for  $550.  If  he  looks  at  the  $50  profit,  and  compares  it 
with  a  $5  profit  on  a  smaller  transaction,  it  looks  large. 
Whether  $50  is  a  large  sum  or  a  small  sum  depends  on  what 
you  arc  thinking  about  in  comparison  with  it.  When  you 
judge  it  on  a  basis  of  percentages  you  see  that  it  is  only  10 
per  cent  of  the  original  cost  —  a  very  low  gross  profit  for 
handling  the  merchandise.  The  man  who  neglects  to  use 
the  percentage  standard  may  often  fool  himself  very  badly. 
The  same  principle  holds  good,  not  only  in  the  matter  of 
gross  profit,  but  in  salaries,  rent,  advertising,  light,  selling 
expense,  manufacturing  expense  —  practically  everything 
in  which  comparisons  form  a  basis  for  judgment. 

Percentage  alone,  however,  is  often  deceptive.  A  man 
may  gain  500  per  cent  over  the  business  he  did  on  the  same 
day  a  year  ago,  when  the  actual  sales  on  that  day  reduced 
to  dollars  might  be  insignificant.  But  even  in  this  case 
percentage  deserves  its  share  of  consideration. 


190 


WORDS  BY  THE  WAY 


THOUGHTS        ON       BUSINESS 

FEEL   YOUR   WAY 

Many  of  our  unpleasant  experiences  are  merely  the 
working  out  of  some  wrong  theory  we  have  admitted.  A 
man  who  was  beginning  a  new  business  got  the  idea  that  it 
was  a  good  thing  to  put  on  appearances  —  whether  circum- 
stances warranted  it  or  not.  "  I  am  going  to  show  them, " 
he  said,  "that  I  am  prosperous  in  my  business,  and  I  know 
business  will  gravitate  my  way  because  people  hke  to  deal 
with  men  who  are  making  a  success. "  On  this  theory  he 
drew  on  his  limited  capital  and  bought  an  expensive  ma- 
hogany roll  top  desk,  oriental  rugs,  and  other  office  equip- 
ment to  correspond,  took  expensive  quarters,  and  organ- 
ized an  office  force.  Then  he  leaned  back  luxuriously  in 
his  great  arm  chair  and  expected  business  to  "gravitate" 
his  way.  But  it  didn't  work.  Business  came  slowly  — 
regardless  of  the  mahogany  desk.  Within  three  months 
the  desk  and  fine  rugs  were  sold  at  a  sacrifice  to  pay  run- 
ning expenses. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  there  was  business  enough  to  make 
an  encouraging  start  if  his  expenses  had  been  planned 
accordingly.  But  he  had  planned  his  running  expenses 
to  be  in  keeping  with  the  business  he  expected  to  have  — 
perhaps  with  the  business  he  desired  to  have  —  thinking 
that  the  show  of  prosperity  would  draw  enough  to  make  up 
the  difference. 

When  you  proceed  on  a  theory,  be  sure  the  theory  is  not 
a  fallacy.  Many  a  man  has  wasted  five  years  of  his  life 
because  his  theory  was  wrong. 


193 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

GETTING   A   SCHEME 

It  is  usually  safe  to  talk  plans  over  with  well  informed 
persons  before  you  go  very  far.  A  "scheme"  is  a  very 
fascinating  thing,  and  often  a  very  deceiving  thing.  A 
side  light  often  saves  much  fruitless  work.  Those  not 
under  the  spell  of  your  scheme  can  see  more  clearly  what 
you  are  refusing  to  let  yourself  see. 

A  publisher  spent  two  months  and  hundreds  of  dollars 
working  out  the  preliminaries  of  a  campaign  before  he 
was  willing  to  talk  over  the  general  idea  with  his  heu- 
tenants.  When  he  finally  did  talk  it  over  he  was  shown 
fundamental  reasons  why  the  plan  was  not  a  sound  one, 
and  was  compelled,  by  sheer  force  of  his  own  convictions, 
to  drop  the  project. 

But  what  of  the  wasted  two  months,  and  the  unnec- 
essary expense  ?  And  what  of  the  work  that  might  have 
been  accomplished  in  those  two  months?  That  was  the 
price  of  his  tuition  in  the  school  of  experience  to  learn  this 
lesson:  "Don't  be  afraid  of  putting  your  scheme  to  the 
test  of  adverse  criticism.  A  scheme  that  won't  stand  a 
dash  of  cold  water  is  only  a  'scheme'  after  all." 


194 


THOUGHTS        ON       BUSINESS 

CAREFUL  INVESTMENTS 

Bad  investments  have  cost  many  a  man  the  savings  of 
years  —  because  he  didn't  investigate. 

"  How  can  a  man  test  a  proposed  investment  ?  "  I  asked 
a  prominent  banker. 

'* There  are  two  simple  rules  of  investigation,"  he 
replied,  "which  one  should  always  use.  If  they  are  appHed 
by  the  individual  investor  they  will  often  save  him  from 
unsafe  investments.    These  two  rules  are  — 

"i.  Investigate  the  men  who  control  the  company. 

"2.  Investigate  the  property  itself. 

"  If  it  is  not  possible  to  learn  about  the  men  the  next  rule 
is  —  don't  invest.  And  if  you  can't  learn  definitely  about 
the  property  —  don't  invest.  The  honest  company,  know- 
ing the  well  informed  investors  insist  on  these  rules,  makes 
the  necessary  information  readily  accessible.  The  un- 
sound concerns  hide  the  real  facts,  avoid  investors  who 
understand  the  business,  and  go  after  small  investors  who 
may  be  deceived  by  bald  statements  and  extravagant 
promises  made  through  advertisements." 

These  rules  do  not  guarantee  that  an  investment  is  safe, 
for  even  men  of  good  standing  may  be  deceived  in  their 
most  conservative  expectations.  But  such  investigations 
will  prevent  many  unsound  ventures. 


195 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

LOOK  BENEATH  THE  SURFACE 

The  work  that  makes  the  most  show  is  not  always  the 
most  important.  Two  young  men  were  overheard  talk- 
ing about  their  work.  One  mentioned  with  pride  how 
much  was  left  to  him  —  work  that  no  one  checked  up  — 
and  how  careful  he  was  to  do  his  work  correctly  and  thus 
qualify  himself  for  larger  responsibilities.  The  other  said 
cynically,  "After  you  have  worked  for  the  old  gentleman 
a  while  longer  you  will  learn  that  what  counts  with  him  is 
what  shows  on  the  surface.  He  won't  give  you  credit  for 
anything  that  he  can't  see  at  a  glance  I  found  that  out 
when  I  first  came  here,  and  I  have  put  my  big  apples  on 
top  ever  since." 

"Well, "  replied  the  first,  "I  am  not  working  merely  for 
his  favor.  I  have  my  own  standards  to  live  up  to,  and  my 
own  character  to  build.  I  don't  expect  to  stay  here  always, 
and  when  I  leave  I  would  rather  have  a  thorough  business 
capacity  than  to  stand  high  in  the  opinion  of  a  man  who 
never  looks  beneath  the  surface." 

The  man  who  works  "to  seem  and  not  to  be "  is  Hke  the 
boy  in  arithmetic  who  sets  down  the  answer  to  his  problem 
without  working  out  the  solution  —  thinking  to  deceive  the 
teacher  and  get  his  marks  without  working  for  them.  And 
the  manager  whose  short-sighted  policy  encourages  surface 
work  is  like  the  teacher  who  is  fooled  by  the  forced  answer. 


196 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

''GOOD  MORNING" 

Do  you  always  remember  to  say  "Good  morning"  In 
your  most  cheerful  manner  when  you  come  into  the  office 
or  the  workshop  ?  It  is  a  little  thing,  but  it  is  powerful  to 
smooth  the  way  for  a  pleasant  day.  How  often  we  need 
to  be  reminded  that  it  is  the  little  things  of  life  which  go  to 
make  up  happiness! 

I  remember  one  morning  I  was  in  an  establishment  on 
a  business  errand  when  the  manager  arrived  for  the  day. 
With  a  cold  stare  he  passed  near  several  of  his  assistants, 
but  without  a  word  of  cheer  for  the  day.  He  walked  up  to 
one  of  the  men  and  began  talking  business  —  a  criticism 
within  the  hearing  of  others.  Conversation  ceased  in  the 
room,  and  the  very  atmosphere  of  the  place  seemed  chilled 

—  as  if  a  window  had  been  opened  in  winter. 

Many  times  have  I  contrasted  that  incident  with  the 
spirit  which  I  am  glad  to  say  prevails  in  many  other  offices 

—  a  spirit  of  cordial  welcome  and  friendly  fellowship,  where 
"Good  morning,"  "Good  night,"  "Thank  you,"  and 
"Please,"  grow  hke  flowers  in  the  tropics. 

How  little  some  men  seem  to  realize  the  effect  of  their 
words  on  others!  The  spirit  manifested  by  the  head  of  a 
business  permeates  the  estabHshment  as  surely  and  as  com- 
pletely as  sugar  sweetens  tea.  This  important  fact  needs 
to  be  more  generally  understood.  When  it  is,  there  will  be 
more  cheerful  greetings  of  "Good  morning"  to  start  the 
day  in  the  right  spirit. 


197 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

MORAL   VENTILATION 

The  mental  and  moral  atmosphere  of  a  business  de- 
serves ample  consideration;  it  is  a  matter  of  great  im- 
portance to  the  development  of  the  individual. 

A  man  who  had  been  employed  in  an  office  where  pro- 
gressiveness  and  good  feeling  prevailed  left  to  take  a  posi- 
tion at  a  much  higher  salary  with  another  concern.  But  he 
quickly  learned  that  the  spirit  of  the  new  place  was  not 
like  that  of  the  old  one.  Men  quarreled  with  each  other 
over  trifles,  the  manager  was  gruff  and  overbearing,  the 
conversation  was  either  made  up  of  criticising  each  other 
or  of  matters  equally  unwholesome.  The  man  soon  dis- 
covered that  the  additional  salary  was  more  than  offset  by 
the  unrefming  influences,  and  he  was  glad  of  an  opportu- 
nity to  return  to  his  old  position  at  his  former  salary. 

Many  men  get  started  in  the  wrong  kind  of  business 
atmosphere  and  do  not  always  realize  that  there  are  places 
where  things  are  very  different;  and  not  appreciating 
this  they  do  not  make  the  effort  to  get  into  a  better 
atmosphere  or  to  purify  the  one  they  are  in.  Instead  they 
spend  a  large  portion  of  their  lives  under  conditions  as 
unwholesome  as  a  closed  room  in  summer. 

When  a  man  gets  a  "  better  offer"  in  salary,  let  him  not 
fail  to  give  attention  to  the  moral  atmosphere,  for  it  may 
have  a  far  greater  influence  on  his  career  than  any  increase 
in  salary  can  have. 


1 91 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

PLEASE 

If  you  would  like  to  do  something  to  lessen  the  friction 
of  business  intercourse,  cultivate  the  general  use  of  the 
word  "Please."  Use  it  when  you  give  an  order,  when 
you  ask  a  favor,  or  make  a  request.  Use  it  when  you 
speak  on  the  telephone.  Use  it  especially  in  speaking  to 
those  who  are  working  under  your  authority. 

To  say  "Please"  is  one  of  the  first  lessons  of  childhood 
—  and  one  of  the  necessar)^  lessons  of  the  well-rounded 
business  life. 

What  a  magic  word  is  "Please!"  And  to  what  shall 
it  be  compared? 

It  is  Hke  the  oil  on  the  wheel — for  it  softens  the  friction 
of  every  transaction. 

It  is  like  the  dot  on  the  "i" — for  though  a  very  small 
thing,  it  is  instantly  missed  when  it  is  gone. 

It  is  like  the  name  on  the  cover  of  the  book — for  it  is 
an  index  to  what  is  within. 

Learn  to  use  this  wonderful  word  —  learn  to  love  its 
charm,  its  sweetness  and  its  power.  It  is  only  a  little 
thing  in  itself,  but  the  spirit  that  prompts  its  use  is  the 
essence  of  greatness. 


199 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


THE   VALUE   OF   HUMOR 

Humor  is  a  wholesome  thing  in  the  business  life. 
Often  when  a  clash  of  interests  or  a  difference  of  opinion 
has  strained  relations  almost  to  a  breaking  point,  a  touch 
of  humor  will  save  the  day.  Two  men,  who  but  a  moment 
ago  were  angered  at  each  other,  stop  a  second  to  laugh 
together.  The  efifect  is  magical  —  they  are  friends  again, 
stronger  than  ever. 

What  is  humor,  that  it  should  do  this?  It  is  not  the 
mere  idle  jest,  the  counterfeit  of  true  humor.  The  sense 
of  humor  is  the  ability  to  see  the  incongruity  of  dispro- 
portion. And  this  is  the  first  step  toward  seeing  the  true 
proportion  of  things. 

Humor  is  hke  salt  —  too  much  of  it  spoils  the  meat, 
but  just  enough  gives  it  a  flavor  that  nothing  else  can. 

Make  a  roomy  place  in  your  business  system  for  hu- 
mor. Take  life  seriously  enough  to  be  sincere  in  all 
things,  but  with  all  your  seriousness,  retain  and  cultivate  a 
measure  of  the  wholesome  abihty  to  perceive  the  laugh- 
able unfitness  of  some  things.  And  from  that  point  of 
view  you  can  the  more  clearly  see  things  as  they  are.  It 
is  not  easy  to  fool  the  man  who  can  see  the  humorous  side 
of  things. 


200 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

POWER  IN   POETRY 

We  are  accustomed  to  think  of  poetry  as  something 
apart  from  the  everyday  activities  of  life  and  having  Uttle 
or  no  place  in  the  forces  of  the  work-a-day  world.  But  if 
we  could  look  within  the  minds  and  hearts  of  men  and 
women  who  are  bearing  the  burdens  of  the  great  world  of 
business,  and  could  see  how  much  of  strength,  and  repose, 
and  resolution,  and  hope,  all  ripening  into  action  —  if  we 
could  see,  in  brief,  how  much  practical  inspiration  has 
gone  into  their  Hves  through  the  mysterious  power  of  poetry, 
we  should  be  tempted  to  conclude  that  poetry  has  a  part 
in  the  world's  activities  to  a  degree  that  transcends  the 
world's  abihty  to  perceive  and  appreciate. 

Men  and  women  absorbed  in  the  thoughts  of  daily 
routine,  whether  of  high  or  low  degree,  should  not,  in  their 
more  busy  years,  forget  the  inspiration  and  comfort  which 
poetry  affords.  To  follow  sympathetically  the  thoughts 
of  the  poet  is  to  make  the  heart  young  again  and  give  an 
impetus  to  every  worthy  action  and  thought. 


30I 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

PASS   IT    ON 

When  you  read  anything  that  you  think  would  be 
of  special  interest  to  some  other  person  —  and  that  he 
might  otherwise  never  see  —  do  you  clip  it  and  send  it  to 
him? 

It  would  be  a  good  plan  for  every  large  business  house 
to  cultivate  this  custom  among  its  employes  —  especially 
among  those  in  charge  of  a  division  of  the  business.  Hun- 
dreds of  valuable  ideas  are  to  be  found  in  the  thousands 
of  papers  and  magazines  which  fall  like  snowflakes  on 
every  hand.  It  is  clearly  impossible  for  any  one  person 
to  read  them  all.  But  if  two  hundred  persons  were  ex- 
changing memoranda  of  their  observations,  it  would 
virtually  give  each  the  benefit  of  the  good  thoughts  en- 
countered by  all. 

I  am  never  so  grateful  as  when  some  friend  points  out 
to  me  a  new  and  helpful  idea,  and  many  a  time  have  I 
found  just  what  I  needed  in  a  clipping  sent  me  by  some 
thoughtful  person. 


202 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

REACHING   HIS   AUDIENCE 

An  author  sat  in  his  study  one  afternoon  questioning 
his  measure  of  success,  and  thinking  of  the  years  of  toil  he 
had  spent  in  the  effort  to  reach  the  hearts  and  lives  of  men. 
The  postman  came  and  handed  him  two  letters.  One  was 
from  a  boy  working  in  a  grocery  store,  saying,  "I  find  in 
your  book  just  what  I  have  always  craved  to  know. "  The 
other  letter  was  from  the  president  of  a  great  university, 
saying,  "I  sat  up  till  three  o'clock  last  night  reading  your 
book,  and  find  it  a  great  help  to  me." 

The  author  was  deeply  moved.  He  thought  again  of 
the  long  years  through  which  he  had  struggled  to  master 
a  style  that  would  bring  his  message  home  to  the  widest 
circle  of  readers.  Here  was  evidence  that  he  had  reached 
that  ideal. 

Wasn't  this  worth  all  the  effort?  The  satisfaction  of 
that  moment  threw  a  spell  of  joy  across  the  memory  of 
his  struggles.  And  in  that  hour  came  an  inspiration  —  a 
noble  resolve,  not  to  look  back  at  the  struggle,  but  to  look 
forward  to  success.  And  there  also  was  written  one  of 
those  grand  sentences  which  seem  to  compress  the  deep 
living  of  years  between  their  words  —  this  conviction : 
"  What  people  want  to  read  is  what  will  help  them  to  live. " 


203 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSIN  ESS 

ACQUIRING   GOOD   TASTE 

Good  taste  is  indispensable  to  the  success  of  anyone 
having  to  do  with  merchandise  —  and  nothing  can  atone 
for  the  lack  of  it. 

Many  imagine  that  taste  is  an  inborn  quality  which 
cannot  be  acquired.  But  this  is  only  partly  true.  Like 
many  other  qualities  it  is  largely  a  matter  of  education. 

If  a  man  finds  himself  lacking  in  good  taste  he  should 
not,  merely  because  of  the  theory  of  inborn  qualities,  give 
up  the  effort  to  attain  it.  Let  him  consider  what  goes  to 
make  up  good  taste,  and  what  are  the  usual  causes  of  poor 
taste,  and  thus  he  may  make  some  progress  in  the  right 
direction. 

What  is  taste  ?  It  is  an  intelligent  conforming  to  cer- 
tain reasonable  standards  of  proportion,  form,  color,  hne, 
material,  ornamentation,  environment,  complement,  con- 
trast, utility,  and  tone.  Poor  taste  is  largely  an  ignorant 
self-sufficiency  —  a  selfishness  that  disregards  the  opinions 
of  others,  tramples  upon  accepted  standards,  and  clumsily 
substitutes  egotism  for  refinement. 

Accepted  standards  are  not  all  mere  custom  —  some  of 
them  are  based  on  fundamental  principles.  A  willingness 
to  conform  to  intelligent  standards  will  do  much  to  improve 
the  taste  of  anyone. 


204 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

ROTTEN  APPLE   ECONOMY 

A  FRIEJTO  of  mine  was  talking  of  the  false  sense  of 
economy  which  many  people  have,  which  makes  them  do 
very  ridiculous  things  under  the  impression  that  they  are 
models  of  common  sense. 

"  When  I  was  a  boy, "  he  said,  "we  had  a  large  orchard. 
My  father  was  one  of  those  economical  individuals.  He 
would  make  us  pick  out  all  the  apples  with  rotten  spots 
in  them,  and  eat  those  first.  By  the  time  we  finished  one 
supply  of  rotten  apples  there  would  usually  be  others  rotten 
enough  to  begin  on.  If  not,  we  were  supposed  to  wait 
until  some  began  to  spoil  before  we  took  them.  In  this 
way  we  went  all  winter,  eating  rotten  apples,  and  letting 
the  good  ones  stay  in  the  bins.  It  always  seemed  a  wicked 
waste  to  my  father  to  see  anyone  eat  an  apple  that  was 
sound  enough  to  keep  a  while  longer." 

Do  you  eat  your  rotten  apples  and  leave  the  good  ones 
till  they  spoil?  Do  you  neglect  your  rich  and  mellow 
opportunities  to  come  in  touch  with  the  best  things  of  life 
while  you  satisfy  yourself  with  the  meager  salvage  of  things 
outgrown?  Beware  of  "rotten  apple  economy."  It 
would  rob  you  of  the  best  that  life  holds  for  you. 


3o; 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   TATTERED    SHIRT    SOPHISTRY 

Many  a  man's  small  measure  of  success  has  been  due 
to  the  proverb,  "A  tattered  shirt  may  cover  an  honest 
heart. "  Not  that  the  proverb  is  untrue,  but  that  it  is  mis- 
interpreted. One  of  its  harmful  interpretations  is  that 
which  leads  a  man  to  excuse  himself  to  himself  for  lack  of 
care  in  his  dress.  He  may  know  he  has  an  honest  heart, 
but  the  world  is  looking  at  the  tattered  shirt  —  and  the 
world  is  wont  to  judge  men  by  what  it  sees  of  them.  It  is 
coming  to  be  understood  that  an  honest  heart  can  be  most 
effective  when  it  docs  not  neglect  to  give  outward  expres- 
sion to  inward  worth.  The  truly  honest  heart  is  not  willing 
to  let  itself  be  covered  by  the  tattered  shirt  when  there  is  a 
better  one  to  be  had. 

It  behooves  every  man  who  has  ever  hstened  to  that 
easy-going  slip-shod  philosophy  to  stop  and  try  to  count  up 
what  it  has  cost  him.  He  cannot  really  count  it  because  he 
does  not  and  cannot  know  how  very  much  the  cost  has  been. 
But  it  is  well  perhaps  that  he  does  not  know,  or  else  he 
might  be  discouraged  in  his  effort  to  regain  the  ground  he 
has  lost.  But  the  only  course  open  to  him  is  to  regain  as 
much  of  it  as  he  can  —  by  laying  aside  the  tattered  shirt 
and  wearing  a  more  worthy  covering  for  his  honest  heart. 


206 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

NOT  HERE   BELOW 

Two  employes  in  a  large  establishment  were  talking 
about  their  work.     One  said:  "I  beheve  every  man  work- ' 
ing  at  the  same  job  ought  to  get  the  same  wages.    That  's 
fair  for  everyone." 

"Well,"  rephed  the  other,  "that  may  please  the  fellow 
who  isn't  willing  to  do  his  best.  But  for  me,  I  want  the 
satisfaction  of  knowing  that  if  I  work  harder  and  more 
inteUigently  than  the  average  man  I  can  get  that  much 
more  money." 

"Yes,"  said  the  first,  "and  you  are  just  the  kind  of 
fellow  that  upsets  everything." 

"  Upsets  what  ?  Upsets  a  soft  job  for  some  fellow  that 
won't  work.  There  isn't  a  man  that  works  at  anything 
that  wouldn't  be  better  off  in  the  long  run  if  he  got  paid 
according  to  what  he  does." 

"I'll  do  more  when  I  get  paid  more,  and  not  before. 
If  I  get  two  dollars  I  '11  do  two  dollars'  worth  of  work,  and 
if  I  get  three  dollars  I  '11  do  three  dollars'  worth  of  work. 
What's  the  matter  with  that?" 

"Well, "  said  the  other,  "you  '11  look  a  long  while  before 
you  find  anybody  that  will  pay  you  more  in  the  hope  that 
you  will  do  more.  The  world  isn't  built  that  way.  It 
may  be  that  way  in  the  fool's  paradise,  but  not  down  here 
below." 


207 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

HOW  HONEST  ARE  YOU? 

Unless  wc  keep  close  watch  of  our  motives  we  are 
likely  to  find  ourselves  doing  little  things  that  are  really 
dishonest.  A  young  man  was  preparing  to  issue  the  first 
number  of  a  trade  magazine.  He  approached  a  prominent 
merchant  and  asked  him  for  an  advertisement.  When  it 
was  refused  he  said  to  the  merchant:  "I  can't  afford  not 
to  have  you  represented.  I  will  give  you  this  page  free. 
That  will  give  me  a  start  with  the  other  merchants." 

"Will  you  tell  them  you  gave  me  the  page  free  ?"  the 
merchant  asked,  playfully. 

"Oh,  no,  I  couldn't  do  that,"  the  young  man  said. 

"In  other  words,"  said  the  merchant,  "you  want  them 
to  beheve  something  that  isn't  so  —  the  value  of  it  to  you 
depends  on  their  beheving  that  I  paid  for  the  space.  You 
want  me  to  put  my  name  down  there  to  back  up  the  lie. 
You  ask  me  to  betray  the  confidence  those  other  merchants 
might  have  in  my  business  judgment  —  for  which  you  offer 
me  a  space  which  you  value  at  ten  dollars.  And  this  is 
the  way  you  propose  to  start  your  new  business!  If  they 
should  ask  you  whether  I  paid  for  the  space,  would  you 
tell  the  truth  or  tell  them  a  lie?" 

"When  you  put  it  that  way  it  looks  different, "  said  the 
young  man.  "I  am  very  grateful  to  you  for  showing  me 
that  point.  I  certainly  don't  intend  to  start  my  business 
on  misrepresentation,  but  I  had  n't  looked  at  it  that  way 
before." 


208 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

UNWISE   CHANGES 

Many  a  man  has  sacrificed  a  splendid  opportunity  by 
throwing  up  his  position  because  of  some  fancied  wrong. 
"It  is  a  sad  thing,  "said  a  manager,  "to  see  how  readily 
some  employes  will  leave  a  good  position.  Just  the  other 
day  I  had  occasion  to  reprimand  a  young  man  because  his 
work  was  not  what  it  should  be.  He  had  grown  careless 
and  was  making  mistakes.  My  effort  to  correct  him  was 
strongly  resented.  He  got  mad  and  asked  for  his  money. 
If  he  had  only  taken  the  correction  in  the  spirit  in  which 
it  was  given  he  might  have  remained  with  us  indefinitely. 
But  hundreds  go  that  way.  They  can't  stand  censure, 
and  they  become  angry  at  the  slightest  effort  to  correct 
them.  I  don't  especially  feel  that  it  is  my  province  to  try 
to  coax  an  employe  to  stay  under  the  circumstances  —  he 
would  be  apt  to  put  his  own  construction  on  it,  and  either 
get  the  idea  that  he  was  indispensable,  or  take  delight  in 
leaving  when  he  thought  he  would  be  missed.  I  have 
quieted  some  of  them  down,  and  they  were  glad  of  it  after- 
wards, but  in  many  cases  it  is  hard  to  do  anything  with 
them.  Then  they  go  to  their  friends  and  tell  them  a  most 
exaggerated  story,  and  of  course  the  friends  are  not  prop- 
erly informed  of  the  real  situation  and  cannot  always  give 
them  the  advice  they  need. 


209 


THOUGHTS        ON       BUSINESS 

REFUSING  TO    GROW  OLD 

Men  of  forty  or  fifty  who  are  letting  themselves  think 
of  themselves  as  if  their  days  of  usefulness  were  waning, 
need  one  thing  —  a  new  idea  of  themselves.  They  need 
to  have  their  thoughts  turned  toward  a  period  of  greater 
usefulness  still  before  them.  A  noted  author  on  his  seven- 
tieth birthday  said:  "I  expect  to  do  the  best  work  of  my 
life  in  the  years  now  ahead  of  me.  I  have  learned  that  a 
man  may  be  as  young  as  his  thoughts.  If  he  keeps  in- 
formed on  present  day  ideas,  and  lives  in  the  present 
instead  of  in  the  past,  he  need  not  be  an  old  man  at  all. " 

This  wholesome  spirit  would  put  new  life  and  purpose 
into  many  who  are  letting  go  of  their  interest  in  affairs  be- 
cause they  think  they  are  growing  old. 

One  man  began  to  study  music  when  he  was  fifty,  and 
became  proficient  in  it.  Another  man  became  a  painter 
of  note  although  he  had  not  touched  a  brush  until  he  was 
forty-eight.  Many  of  the  best  work  s  of  literature  have  been 
produced  late  in  life.  There  are  many  inspiring  examples 
to  encourage  those  who  will  consider  them. 

If  ever  there  was  an  emancipation  idea  that  needed  to 
be  promulgated  it  is  the  wholesome  doctrine  of  refusing  to 
grow  old.  When  you  hear  middle  aged  men  talking  of  get- 
ting old,  just  advance  this  doctrine  —  that  a  man  is  as  old 
as  he  thinks,  and  that  he  should  keep  up  with  present  day 
thought  and  look  forward  to  years  of  usefulness. 


210 


THOUGHTS        ON         BUSINESS 

BUSINESS   METHODS   IN   SCHOOLS 

Nearly  every  educational  institution  in  the  country  is 
open  to  criticism  from  the  business  man's  point  of  view, 
because  it  violates  one  of  the  first  principles  of  sound  busi- 
ness. That  principle  is  to  work  every  man  at  his  best 
capacity.  The  business  man  employs  an  assistant  to  save 
his  time,  a  stenographer  to  save  the  assistant's  time,  an 
office  boy  to  save  the  stenographer's  time,  and  modem 
office  devices  to  save  the  boy's  time.  All  business  organi- 
zation is  based  on  this  principle. 

The  educational  institution  often  ignores  this  principle 
and  requires  its  most  capable  workers  to  do  certain  work 
that  less  skilled  persons  could  do.  The  keeping  of 
laborious  records,  and  all  the  multiphed  detail  attendant 
upon  the  conduct  of  classes,  might  properly  be  placed  in  the 
hands  of  persons  especially  suited  to  the  work,  leaving  the 
instructors  free  to  do  their  best  in  those  higher  lines  of 
work  for  which  they  are  prepared. 

It  is  partly  because  of  the  unbusinesshke  methods  used 
in  many  of  the  schools,  and  the  lack  o:  appreciation  of  the 
economies  and  principles  of  business,  that  young  men  come 
from  the  schools  unprepared  to  take  such  part  in  the  busi- 
ness world  as  their  age  and  talents  in  some  directions 
ought  to  entitle  them  to  take. 


211 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

ARE   WE  ACTORS? 

The  chief  clerk  in  a  large  office  was  discussing  with  a 
friend  the  friction  of  business  intercourse,  the  relative  im- 
portance of  the  different  officers  and  members  of  the  firm, 
and  the  show  of  authority  which  was  sometimes  exercised 
around  him. 

"Doesn't  it  worry  you  sometimes  to  know  how  to 
keep  peace  with  them  all?"  asked  the  friend. 

"Oh,  I'll  tell  you,"  said  the  chief  clerk.  "I  have 
come  to  look  upon  this  whole  business  as  a  sort  of  stage. 
Each  one  of  these  men  has  his  part  to  play,  and  there  is 
just  as  much  good  acting  going  on  right  here  as  there  is  in 
any  theater.  We  have  melodrama,  tragedy,  and  comedy, 
and  all  the  variations,  in  the  course  of  a  forenoon.  If  you 
sec  these  men  off  their  guard  they  are  just  hke  anyone  else; 
but  if  they  are  engaged  in  some  transaction  they  assume  a 
role  and  act  it  out  until  the  curtain  falls.  It  makes  it  easier 
when  you  look  on  it  that  way.  A  good  deal  that  you  might 
think  is  perverse  human  nature  is  merely  acting.  Since 
I  found  that  out  I  haven't  let  it  worry  me  when  the  sparks 
fly.  I  look  on  as  a  spectator  would,  or  think  only  of  acting 
my  part  as  the  others  do  theirs. " 


212 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

LETTERS   THAT   DO    GOOD 

Much  good  may  be  accomplished  by  writing  letters  of 
complaint,  criticism,  or  suggestion.  Such  letters  have  a 
distinct  value  in  rounding  off  the  comers  of  commercial 
crudeness.  Many  notable  improvements  in  methods, 
service  and  customs  in  business  and  in  travel  have  been 
brought  about  by  letters  from  observing  persons.  A  care- 
less salesman,  a  delayed  package,  a  poorly  served  meal,  a 
drastic  rule,  an  overheated  car,  an  irregular  or  inadequate 
service  —  such  things  are  topics  of  vital  interest  to  an  alert 
business  man,  and  a  letter  from  a  patron  causes  him  to 
think  deeply  on  the  points  criticised,  and  some  definite 
action  usually  results.  In  this  way  hundreds  are  often 
benefited  by  the  criticism  of  one. 

Many  persons  hesitate  to  wnrite  to  a  building  manager, 
store  manager,  railroad  superintendent,  or  pubhc  official, 
for  fear  their  letters  will  not  be  kindly  received.  But  the 
fact  is,  most  progressive  men  really  appreciate  such  letters 
and  desire  well  meant  criticisms. 

The  spirit  of  the  letter  is  important.  The  letters  that 
accomphsh  the  best  results  are  not  those  which  show  anger 
and  heated  indignation;  not  those  which  vent  unqualified 
condemnation ;  nor  those  which  heap  abuse  on  the  institu- 
tion involved  —  but  rather  are  they  those  which  calmly 
and  courteously  point  out  the  defect  as  if  it  had  escaped  the 
manager's  usually  careful  attention  —  perhaps  graciously 
coupled  with  a  deserved  compliment. 


213 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

BURN  THE   THISTLE-SEED 

Misunderstandings  should  always  be  corrected  as 
quickly  and  as  thoroughly  as  possible.  It  may  take  time 
and  trouble  to  do  this,  but  it  is  worth  wliile.  Misunder- 
standings are  prone  to  grow  and  spread.  And,  like  a  fire, 
they  are  easier  to  put  out  at  the  beginning  than  at  any  time 
later. 

Most  of  the  friction  in  business  grows  out  of  misunder- 
standings. At  the  bottom  of  nearly  every  case  of  antipathy 
there  is  a  distorted  idea  of  the  motives  and  purposes  of 
others.  The  fact  is  proved  a  thousand  times  when  per- 
sons who  have  been  out  of  harmony  with  each  other  reach 
an  understanding  and  become  friends  again.  Looking 
through  a  distorted  glass  the  face  of  a  friend  appears  un- 
pleasant to  look  upon. 

Especially  should  misunderstandings  be  carefully  cor- 
rected when  an  employe  is  leaving  a  business,  and  has  a 
feeling  that  an  injustice  has  been  done  him.  He  should  not 
be  allowed  to  go  away  harboring  resentment  in  his  mind. 
Without  the  opportunity  of  talking  it  out,  such  a  feeling 
may  rankle  in  his  heart  for  years,  making  him  unhappy, 
and  perhaps  finding  its  way  to  other  minds  —  setting  afloat 
stories  and  rumors  which  react  upon  the  business  and  the 
individual  who  was  thought  to  be  at  fault.  A  httle  time 
spent  in  talking  the  matter  out  might  save  a  great  deal  of 
useless  trouble  later  on. 


214 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

RECONSIDER  LOST   EFFORTS 

Many  a  good  idea  has  been  lost  because  the  first  efforts 
to  introduce  it  were  not  successful.  Some  men  give  a  new 
idea  a  meager  trial,  and  if  it  does  not  quickly  pay  they 
discard  it  as  having  no  value.  The  fact  is  that  some  of  the 
best  ideas  in  the  world  have  been  worked  out  through  many 
failures.  It  takes  faith  to  get  a  new  idea  established.  And 
more  often  than  not  it  takes  courage  to  meet  the  prejudice 
of  men  who  are  used  to  doing  the  thing  another  way.  Al- 
most every  great  idea  that  has  come  to  the  world  has  met 
with  opposition.  Printing  was  at  first  necessarily  done  in 
secret.  Men  who  first  carried  umbrellas  were  stoned  in 
the  streets  of  London.  The  effort  to  introduce  stoves  met 
with  bitter  denunciation.  The  railroad,  telegraph,  tele- 
phone, and  typewriter  were  either  opposed  or  ridiculed. 
Few  of  the  innovations  in  office  equipment  have  come  with- 
out some  manifestation  of  popular  prejudice. 

It  is  well  to  remember  these  things  when  introducing 
any  new  idea.  The  newer  and  better  an  idea  is  the  more 
difficult  it  often  is  to  make  men  see  it. 

Good  ideas  that  have  been  forsaken  because  of  such 
opposition,  and  declared  to  be  failures  before  they  have 
been  fully  developed,  are  entitled  to  reconsideration  and 
perhaps  a  renewed  effort  to  introduce  them. 


215 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

A   GRAIN   OF   SALT 

Business  maxims  should  be  applied  with  care.  A 
misapplied  truth  is  often  the  worst  of  errors,  for  it  is  ad- 
hered to  with  the  assurance  of  truth,  and  without  the  cau- 
tion that  accompanies  a  doubt. 

It  is  a  good  maxim  to  say,  "Keep  out  of  debt."  But 
there  may  be  times  when  to  apply  that  strictly  would  be  the 
worst  thing  one  could  do.  It  is  sometimes  just  as  wise  to 
go  in  debt,  as  it  is  at  other  times  wise  to  keep  out  of  it. 
Many  a  business  has  been  saved  from  failure  by  incurring 
a  judicious  indebtedness,  and  many  a  man  has  been  able  to 
take  advantage  of  a  valuable  opportunity  in  the  same  way. 
Still  the  advice  remains  good,  "Keep  out  of  debt." 
In  other  words,  avoid  debt  unless  it  can  bring  you  some 
definite  advantage. 

No  business  maxim  can  be  applied  with  the  invariable- 
ness  of  the  multiplication  table.  A  man  who  has  a  good 
opening  before  him  shouldn't  place  too  much  faith  in  the 
adage  that  "A  rolHng  stone  gathers  no  moss."  Neither 
should  he  leave  a  good  position  just  to  follow  the  maxim, 
"Sell  in  the  best  market,"  lest  he  find  to  his  sorrow  that 
"A  transplanted  tree  does  not  always  thrive."  Business 
maxims  are  all  right  in  their  place  —  a  pat  way  of  putting 
the  thing;  but  many  of  them  are  only  half-truths  to  begin 
with. 


2i6 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

IT   PAYS   TO    KICK 

Progress  is  bom  of  protest.  The  best  part  of  the 
history  of  the  world  has  been  made  by  kickers  —  people 
who  were  not  willing  to  let  things  sHde  along,  letting 
excuses  take  the  place  of  performances,  and  accepting  as 
satisfactory  the  first  thing  that  was  offered  to  them,  but 
demanding  better  things,  better  service,  better  conditions. 

Some  business  houses  that  furnish  or  manufacture 
supplies  for  other  business  houses — printers,  Hthogra- 
phers,  box  makers,  cabinet  makers,  engravers,  to  mention 
but  a  few  of  them  —  have  three  grades  of  servdce.  There 
is  one  grade  for  the  man  who  accepts  without  question 
almost  anything  they  send  him.  There  is  another  grade 
for  the  man  who  is  known  to  be  particular  and  asks  for  the 
best.  And  there  is  still  another  grade  for  the  man  who 
knows  what  he  wants,  issues  his  specifications  according 
to  an  exacting  standard,  and  kicks  when  he  doesn't  get  all 
that  is  due  him. 

It  is  this  third  type  of  man  that  has  done  more  than 
any  other  to  advance  the  quahty  of  manufactured  products. 
Many  of  the  best  improvements  in  machinery,  methods, 
designs,  materials,  and  varieties  can  be  traced  back  to  the 
man  who  kicks  till  he  gets  what  he  wants.  And  in  serv- 
ing the  cause  of  industrial  progress  he  incidentally  lives  on 
the  fat  of  the  land. 


217 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

NEWSPAPER   INDIVIDUALITY 

In  order  to  command  the  attention  of  business  inter- 
ests in  the  matter  of  advertising  patronage,  every  news- 
paper should  have  some  distinguishing  characteristic. 
It  should  not  be  content  with  being  merely  a  newspaper  — 
it  should  aspire  to  be  the  foremost  newspaper  in  its  locality 
on  at  least  one  thing,  as  local  news,  financial  news,  sporting 
news,  society  news,  literary  things,  or  something  which 
other  papers  in  the  same  field  do  not  cover  so  thoroughly. 
In  other  words,  a  paper  should  be  made  indispensable  to 
the  advertiser  who  wishes  to  fully  cover  the  field  in  that 
locality.  Nothing  draws  so  much  business  to  a  newspaper 
as  the  fact  that  advertisers  have  to  use  it  to  reach  a  certain 
class  of  persons.  There  are  enough  good  things  to  go 
around.  No  matter  how  many  papers  there  are  in  a  field, 
there  is  room  for  each  one  to  do  one  thing  better  than  any 
of  the  others  can  do  it.  As  a  matter  of  fact  it  is  possible  for 
a  small  local  newspaper  to  become  widely  known  outside 
its  own  immediate  field  if  it  contains  even  one  thing  the 
people  want  which  is  not  to  be  found  elsewhere.  Some 
publications  find  their  way  around  the  world  for  the  simple 
reason  that  they  are  the  source  of  supply  for  some  line  of 
thought  which  no  other  publication  contains. 


218 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE  IDEAL   NEWSPAPER 

The  business  men  who  control  the  advertising  patron- 
age of  newspapers  have  it  in  their  power  to  render  a  mo- 
mentous service  to  humanity  by  encouraging  a  purer 
press  —  affording  substantial  proof  that  it  pays  to  be 
decent. 

My  ideal  of  a  newspaper  advertising  medium  is  a 
clean,  progressive  home  newspaper.  It  is  a  paper  which 
is  so  filled  with  good  thoughts  for  every  member  of  the 
family  that  it  finds  a  warm  welcome  and  an  eager  reading 
wherever  it  goes.  It  is  free  from  crime  and  scandal  and 
all  unwholesome  things.  It  takes  more  pride  in  the  qual- 
ity of  its  circulation  than  in  the  mere  quantity  —  but  it 
has  the  quantity  as  well  as  the  quahty.  It  is  not  boastful, 
nor  too  much  given  to  finding  fault.  It  wins  the  confi- 
dence of  the  people  by  its  simplicity,  honesty,  purity,  and 
progressiveness.  It  handles  the  news  of  the  day  in  a  man- 
ner which  appeals  to  the  better  class  of  people,  and  to  the 
better  nature  of  all  people.  It  emphasizes  the  hopeful 
and  thought-worthy  features  of  the  news,  rather  than  the 
discordant  and  trivial  ones.  It  has  a  permanent  location 
for  its  special  features.  It  is  an  authority  on  whatever  it 
undertakes  to  exploit.  It  has  a  reputation  for  correctness. 
It  regulates  its  advertising  pages  by  reasonable  require- 
ments regarding  display  and  illustrations,  so  that  the  page 
presents  a  pleasing  whole,  no  matter  how  many  advertise- 
ments are  on  it.  It  refuses  a  large  percentage  of  the  adver- 
tising which  is  offered  to  it,  because  such  advertising  is  ob- 
jectionable to  its  readers.    It  has  a  reputation  for  reliable 

219 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

advertising  as  well  as  for  reliable  reading  matter.  In 
such  a  publication,  the  advertiser  should  find  his  best 
opportunities.  Long  live  the  clean,  wholesome,  dignified, 
sensible,  progressive  home  newspaper. 


220 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

COMPARATIVE  TYPOGRAPHY 

One  of  the  most  Important  points  in  connection  with 
an  advertisement  is  the  right  sort  of  typography.  There 
is  a  kind  of  irresistible  attraction  about  a  beautiful  piece 
of  printing;  and  there  is  something  inherently  repulsive 
about  an  inartistic  page.  It  is  said  that  the  character  of 
a  town  or  city,  and  the  degree  of  refinement  attained  by  its 
people,  can  be  pretty  generally  determined  by  the  char- 
acter of  the  signs  used  on  its  business  houses.  In  some 
places  you  will  see  the  windows  and  buildings  covered 
with  large  signs,  with  letters  that  are  crude,  inartistic, 
and  unsightly.  It  is  evident  that  no  truly  refined  person 
would  put  up  such  a  sign  over  his  business,  nor  allow  it 
to  remain  on  his  premises  for  a  moment.  So  when  you 
see  a  great  number  of  such  signs  you  feel  instinctively  that 
the  community  is  not  of  the  highest  order  of  refinement  — 
to  say  the  least.  On  the  other  hand  you  will  see  localities 
where  the  signs  are  of  moderate  size,  even  small,  the  letters 
chaste  and  refined,  and  you  feel  instinctively  that  refined 
people  are  there.  This  principle  applies  more  or  less  to 
publications  and  advertisements. 


221 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

HONEST   ADVERTISING 

It  seems  an  uphill  task  to  teach  some  advertisers  that 
cunning  misstatements  have  a  reaction  on  their  business, 
and  that  in  the  long  run  people  will  not  believe  a  word  they 
say.  The  competitive  spirit  would  say,  "Let  them  do  it, 
who  cares  if  they  do  ruin  their  own  business?"  But  the 
progressive  spirit  knows  that  the  influence  of  false  adver- 
tising has  a  strong  tendency  to  shake  the  public  confidence 
in  all  advertising;  so  that  in  time  the  honest  advertiser 
would  not  get  the  credit  for  telling  the  truth.  It  is  the 
interest  of  every  advertiser  and  publisher  to  point  out  the 
folly  of  false  advertising,  and  to  rid  the  public  prints  of 
every  statement  which  smacks  of  untruth.  Far  better 
tell  your  competitor  how  to  advertise  successfully  and 
honestly,  than  to  allow  him  to  poison  the  public  mind  with 
the  thought  that  there  is  no  honesty  in  advertising  and  in 
business,  and  that  the  business  world  is  but  a  mad  mael- 
strom of  deceit  and  dishonesty.  But  through  it  all  the 
honest  advertiser  and  the  honest  business  man  is  making 
his  way  to  the  front,  and  every  day  shows  a  larger  recog- 
nition of  his  true  position  in  the  business  world. 


222 


GLEANINGS 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

GLEANINGS 

Your  interest  in  things  depends  largely  on  your  inter- 
pretation. Some  people  think  the  prize  picture  is  only  a 
daub  —  but  that  is  no  discredit  to  the  picture. 


There  is  always  room  for  the  man  who  can  be  relied 
upon  to  deliver  the  goods  when  he  said  he  would. 

The  best  compensation  for  doing  things  is  the  ability 
to  do  more. 

Neglecting  to  broaden  their  view  has  kept  some  men 
doing  one  thing  all  their  lives. 

A  penny  held  close  to  the  eye  would  obscure  a  chest 
of  gold  ten  feet  away. 

Discern  a  need  and  fill  it  —  that 's  the  way  to  build  a 
big  business. 

A  man  may  work  harder  counting  peanuts  than  sign- 
ing treaties.  

Don't  hire  Shakespeare  to  write  plays  and  then  keep 
him  busy  addressing  envelopes. 

When  Paderewski  is  playing  the  "Minuet,"   don't 
interrupt  him  to  ask  for  his  autograph. 

Progressiveness  is  looking  forward  intelligently,  look- 1 

ing  within  critically,  and  moving  on  incessantly.  [ 

225 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


Resourcefulness  is  the  star  accomplishment.     It  is  the 
master-key  that  fits  all  the  locks  of  business  requirements. 


To  pass  an  idea  on  is  to  multiply  its  power. 


This  very  hour  is  rich  with  opportunities  which  you 
may  lose  if  you  do  not  use  them  right  now.  The  present 
moment  is  the  only  kind  of  time  you  will  ever  have.  If 
you  allow  yourself  to  disregard  this  hour's  worth,  what 
assurance  have  you  that  you  will  not  also  waste  that  other 
hour  in  which  you  mean  to  do  great  thmgs  ? 


Many  young  men  waste  their  opportunities  as  reck- 
lessly as  the  man  of  sudden  wealth  who  lights  a  cigar  with 
a  twenty  dollar  bill. 

It  is  possible  to  be  so  busy  watching  fire- flies  that  we 
have  no  time  left  to  look  at  the  stars. 


Always  beginning  things  and  never  finishing  them  is 
like  pumping  water  out  and  letting  it  run  back. 


The  progressive  man  has  nothing  to  regret  and  nothing 
to  fear  because  of  the  passing  of  time. 


Few  investments  are  so  sure  and  profitable  as  the  effort 
to  equip  one's  self  in  the  four  fundamental  accomplish- 
ments —  how  to  think  accurately  and  comprehensively, 
how  to  express  thought  in  talking  and  writing,  how  to 
work  skillfully  with  the  hands,  and  how  to  take  one's  place 
among  men. 

226 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

If  we  could  eliminate  from  our  lives  all  the  actions  and 
thoughts  that  are  non-essential  to  our  progress,  which  serve 
no  useful  purpose,  and  leave  no  by-product  of  value,  what 
magnificent  distances  we  might  cover  in  a  few  short  years ! 


Every  action  is  a  wise  or  unwise  investment  for  future 
dividends.  The  past  is  gone,  what  we  call  the  present 
moment  goes  over  to  the  past  even  while  we  are  saying  the 
word,  leaving  only  the  future  in  which  to  work  and  enjoy. 
Whatever  we  do  is  done  for  an  effect  in  that  future, 
be  it  near  or  far,  a  minute  or  a  year.  Consider  well,  then, 
the  effect  you  are  trying  to  produce. 


The  Golden  Rule  is  the  world's  greatest  business  maxim 
—  if  not,  what  is  ? 

One  man  uses  a  stream  to  fish  in,  another  makes  it 
turn  a  saw  mill. 

The  value  of  a  dollar  is  not  measured  entirely  by  what 
it  would  buy,  but  also  by  what  it  might  deprive  you  of  if 
you  didn't  have  it  at  the  right  time. 

Learn  how  to  talk;  it  is  one  of  the  most  valuable 
accomphshments  any  man  can  have. 


Lack  of  success  is  largely  the  fruit  of  wasted  oppor- 
tunity. 

Everything  we  do  is  merely  practice  work  for  something 

greater,  and  we  grow  in  capacity  in  the  proportion  that  we 

throw  our  best  efforts  into  whatever  we  undertake. 

227 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


/ 


Everything  well  done  is  good  advertising. 


Thousands  of  men  are  classed  below  their  natural  level 
because  they  use  bad  grammar. 


Lack  of  thoroughness  is  one  of  the  universal  faults. 


The  world  may  yet  see  greater  inventions  than  printing, 
steam  engines,  and  wireless  telegraphy.  The  age  of  fixing 
limits  for  good  things  has  passed. 


No  man  should  be  called  great  until  he  is  a  gentleman. 

Always  do  everything  you  undertake  as  well  as  you 
would  if  it  were  to  be  inspected  by  the  highest  authority 
on  that  subject. 

Don't  strain  at  the  hub  of  the  ponderous  wheel  — 
move  a  cog  that  fits  into  the  rim. 


What  it  takes  a  man  ten  years  to  learn  may  take  him 
but  a  minute  to  tell. 

You  can  save  yourself  years  of  eflFort  by  utilizing  the 
Knowledge  and  experience  of  others  —  beginning  where 
they  leave  off. 

The  true  diplomat  is  the  man  who  has  advanced  more 
than  others  in  the  gentle  art  of  getting  along  with  his  fel- 
low men. 

Good  enough  is  not  good  enough  for  the  man  who 
would  make  his  mark. 

228 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


Just  think  of  the  things  that  haven't  been  done ! 


Are  you  marching  or  marking  time? — it  takes  about 
the  same  amount  of  motion,  so  don't  judge  by  that. 


Make  it  your  business  to  know  what  is  the  best  thing 
in  vour  hne,  and  then  work  in  that  direction. 


The  years  ahead  will  require  more  able  men  than  ever 
before  —  are  you  training  for  it  ? 


Ideas  govern   the  governors,   rule    the    rulers,    and 
manage  the  managers  of  all  nations  and  industries. 


Every  new  continent  lies  overseas. 


Some  things  have  to  be  undertaken  on  faith.     Suppose 
Columbus  had  been  as  weak-kneed  as  you  are ! 


Napoleon  might  have  had  an  automobile  —  if  men 
had  known  enough  to  rig  it  up. 


Caesar's  army  might  have  waited  outside  the  city  gates 
until  some  one  discovered  a  pebble  in  the  end  of  the  key. 

Freak  advertising  may  amuse  its  originators,  but  com- 
mon sense  advertising  will  sell  more  goods. 

Few  things  do  more  to  retard  the  natural  progress  of  a  | 
business  or  a  movement  than  a  lack  of  intelUgent  co- 
operation. 

229 


/ 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

There  is  little  hope  for  the  man  who  is  not  willing  to  be 
told.  

A  wastebasket  is  one  of  a  business  man's  best  friends. 


A  year  of  experience  means  much  or  little  according 
as  we  have  gained  one  point  a  day  or  one  a  month. 


Unity  of  purpose  and  action  is  essential  to  the  full 
success  of  any  business. 

Conservatism  is  often  merely  a  polite  name  for  being 
in  a  rut. 

Precedents  must  give  way  to  progressiveness. 


A  few  years  ago  that  great  building  yonder  was  merely 
a  pencil  mark,  and  before  that  it  was  an  idea. 


A  letter  is  a  representative  of  a  business  —  and  a 
representative  should  never  wear  cap  and  bells  if  he  ex- 
pects to  be  taken  seriously. 

Red  tape  is  system  gone  to  seed. 

Spontaneity  is  the  goose  that  lays  the  golden  eggs. 

Salesmen  make  paths  in  the  forests  of  prejudice  which 
afterwards  become  the  streets  of  a  metropolis. 


If  you  spend  two-thirds  of  the  waking  hours  of  your 
life  in  an  office  there  is  no  harm  in  making  it  habitable. 

230 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

In  an  electric  light  age  it  won't  do  to  stick  to  a  tallow- 
candle  standard. 

It  is  just  as  easy  to  think  of  a  mountain  as  a  hill  when 
you  turn  your  mind  to  it. 

The  angels  keep  track  of  quality,  and  the  boss  of  quan- 
tity.    See  that  you  please  both. 


Big  things  are  only  little  things  put  together. 


That  little  experiment  of  Columbus  cost  seven  thousand 
dollars  —  it 's  a  good  thing  he  had  the  nerve  to  try  it. 


The  captain  sits  in  the  cabin,  but  he  had  to  work  hard 
and  learn  a  lot  to  get  there. 


A  tree  without  leaves  doesn't  give  much  shade  and 
never  bears  apples. 

To  know  but  one  page  of  the  dictionary  doesn't  give 
you  much  of  a  vocabulary. 

While  in  the  main  every  move  should  pay  for  itself, 
there  is  an  exception  in  the  case  of  good  but  feeble  tend- 
encies whose  ultimate  is  manifestly  worth  while,  but 
whose  immature  stages  yield  no  profit.  Many  of  the  finer 
elements  of  growth  require  outside  support  at  the  start. 
Every  great  man  in  the  world's  history  was  once  a  baby. 
If  every  truly  upward  tendency  is  fostered  with  parental 
solicitude,  the  development  of  a  business,  an  industry,  or 

a  nation  is  assured. 

231 


THOUGHTS       ON       BUSINESS 

Beware  how  you  trust  the  man  who  has  tried  to  flatter 
you. 

The  most  far-reaching  work  is  teaching;  for  it  calls 
into  action  the  latent  capacities  of  others,  virtually  accom- 
plishing in  the  aggregate  vastly  more  than  the  teacher 
could  do  by  his  own  efforts,  however  great  his  individual 
capacity  for  work.  The  business  captain  of  the  future 
will  be  more  than  ever  a  teacher. 


Harmony  in  an  organization  is  an  essential,  but  it 
should  not  be  sought  by  making  costly  sacrifices  to  wrong 
conditions  and  tendencies.  A  fair  compromise  has  its 
uses;  but  if  the  right  is  the  real  object  of  both  sides  it 
can  be  discerned  and  followed  to  the  entire  satisfaction 
of  all  concerned. 

Custom  has  a  two-fold  meaning :  on  the  one  hand  it 
represents  the  ripened  fruit  of  experience,  the  final  selec- 
tion after  all  other  ways  have  been  found  inferior;  on  the 
other  hand  it  may  indicate  a  stupid  and  unnecessary  sub- 
mission to  the  despotism  of  past  error  and  outgrown 
conditions. 

It  is  helpful  often  to  think  of  the  fundamentals  of  your 
business.  When  dealing  too  continuously  with  details, 
thought  is  apt  to  become  narrowed  down,  principles  and 
pohcies  forgotten,  and  effort  misdirected. 


Sarcasm  is  the  sour  milk  of  human  kindness. 


Cities  are  built  a  brick  at  a  time. 

232 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

Decisions  on  vital  points  should  seldom  be  made  with- 
out advice,  so  that  all  sides  of  the  question  may  be  prop- 
erly considered.  The  far-reaching  effects  of  even  small 
decisions  necessitate  that  the  fullest  possible  measure  of 
wisdom  be  permitted  to  govern  the  case. 


Much  effective  work  is  done  quietly  and  with  no  out- 
ward sign.  This  work,  usually  vital,  should  be  encouraged 
by  letting  it  be  understood  that  credit  is  being  given  for 
such  work.  Withholding  such  credit  forces  effort  to  seek 
outward  effect  only,  and  forfeits  pioneer  work. 


It  is  well  to  acquire  a  habit  of  analyzing  every  problem 
that  confronts  you :  the  single  stick  may  be  readily  broken, 
but  taken  in  a  bunch  it  resists  your  strongest  efforts. 
The  application  of  this  principle  is  almost  without  end. 
By  it  you  may  grasp  the  fundamentals  or  details  of  a  com- 
plicated business,  improve  your  merchandise,  work  out 
inventions,  solve  perplexing  business  problems,  develop 
opportunities,  beget  foresight,  overcome  faults  —  in  short, 
you  may  progress  rapidly  and  surely  along  any  desired  line. 


Experience  cannot  properly  be  measured  by  time. 
One  man  mastered  five  branches  of  printing  in  ten  months; 
typesetting,  type-founding,  linotyping,  stereotyping,  and 
web  press  operating  —  and  taught  them  to  inexperienced 
men  in  Australia.  It  is  possible  to  step  over  the  arbitrar}' 
time  limits  for  gaining  experience,  to  shorten  the  process 
by  crowding  achievements  closer  together,  and  thus  save 
many  a  wasted  year. 

233 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSIN  ESS 

To  properly  interpret  the  beautiful  is  to  discover  a 
new  world. 

In  all  reform  efforts  special  attention  may  properly  be 
given  to  persons  who  are  in  their  way  leaders  of  thought, 
and  who  therefore  help  to  mould  the  public  opinion;  every 
stroke  with  them  is  as  a  hundred  strokes  elsewhere. 


The  ability  to  write  a  good  business  letter  is  a  valuable 
asset.  Since  almost  every  large  transaction  turns  on  the 
pivot  of  a  letter,  the  man  who  writes  the  letter  wields  a 
power  which  is  worth  cultivating. 
-  To  place  a  proper  estimate  on  the  power  of  letter- 
writing  is  a  big  step  towards  business  success.  Every  one 
has  heard  of  instances  where  a  single  letter  has  turned  the 
favors  of  fortune.  The  chief  ways  of  developing  abihty 
in  this  field  are  as  follows:  write  important  letters  by  hand 
before  dictating,  consider  the  relative  merits  of  incoming 
correspondence,  study  the  art  of  rhetoric,  and  take  pains 
with  every  letter  you  write. 

r 

I  As  every  business  man  has  something  to  sell  —  mer- 

/  chandise  or  services  —  it  is  important  to  acquire  those 
quahties  which  go  to  make  up  salesmanship:  courtesy, 
tact,  knowledge  of  goods,  judgment,  accuracy,  energy, 
appearance,  and  dignity.  It  avails  nothing  to  say  that 
these  qualities  are  inborn.  Whoever  lacks  them  can 
measurably  acquire  them.  The  way  to  do  so  is  open; 
observe  those  who  possess  them,  adapt  but  do  not  imitate 
their  best  traits,  analyze  the  subject  and  master  it  in  sec- 
tions, love  your  work,  and  be  in  earnest  all  the  time. 

234 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 


The  process  of  elimination  insures  a  selection  which  is 
self-evident  and  final.  By  discarding  those  elements  that 
are  less  than  the  best,  only  the  best  can  remain.  In  select- 
ing printing  paper,  for  example,  you  readily  reach  a  con- 
clusion by  discarding  the  samples  which  are  too  hea\7, 
too  light,  too  expensive,  too  cheap,  too  rough,  too  smooth, 
and  so  on.  By  thus  removing  the  possibility  of  a  doubt  a 
wholesome  assurance  is  gained  which  wakens  a  greater 
energy  and  gives  freedom  to  procedure.  In  buying  a  car- 
load of  paper  you  feel  no  hesitancy  if  you  have  considered 
everything  of  the  kind  in  the  market.  The  apphcation  of 
the  principle  is  unlimited:  it  determines  the  size,  form, 
color^  pattern,  quality,  method,  time,  and  price.  It  is  the 
last  word  on  mooted  points;  and  its  use  in  reaching  a  con- 
clusion cannot  be  too  strongly  urged  as  a  factor  in  business 
progress.  

Non-essentials  crowd  in  upon  us,  take  up  our  time, 
sap  our  energy,  distract  our  thought,  amuse  us,  interest 
us,  pretend  they  are  important,  deceive  us,  and  mightily 
rob  us  of  time,  money,  peace,  and  progress.  Yet  it  is 
possible  to  have  our  purpose  so  clearly  fixed  in  mind  that 
we  readily  detect  that  which  is  non-essential,  and  so  are  able 
to  avoid  the  waste.  Herein  is  seen  the  value  of  an  ideal. 
Fixed  in  the  distance,  it  enables  us  to  see  where  falls  the 
straight  line  leading  to  it,  and  thus  shows  how  far  out  of 
our  proper  path  any  given  object  may  he,  as  well  as  the 
stepping  stones  over  which  we  must  go  to  reach  it. 

The  person  who  first  handles  a  proposition  is  in  a  great 

measure  responsible  for  its  final  character. 

235 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

Don't  submit  a  thing  for  approval  that  is  less  than  your 
best ;  it  might  be  accepted  as  it  is,  thus  forfeiting  the  pos- 
sible improvement  you  could  give  it. 

The  great  ship  cannot  move  until  the  engine  starts; 
the  engine  cannot  start  until  the  engineer  pulls  the  lever; 
the  engineer  cannot  pull  the  lever  until  he  gets  the  signal 
from  the  captain;  and  the  captain  won't  give  the  signal 
until  he  gets  the  idea  that  it  is  time  to  go. 

Most  of  the  things  that  occupy  the  time  and  thought 
of  humanity  are  non-essential  to  progress  toward  the  ideal 
life.  The  great  essentials  of  progressive  living  are  hidden 
beneath  a  mass  of  age-evolved  customs,  selfish  motives, 
and  insincerity  of  purpose.  A  few  —  a  very,  very  few  — 
perceive  faintly  these  essentials  and  are  found  working  for 
their  universal  recognition.  The  world's  great  need  calls 
for  thinkers  and  workers.  These  are  coming,  not  by  the 
way  of  the  schools,  but  through  the  awakening  of  unselfish 
life  motives  in  the  hearts  and  lives  of  men  and  women  in 
every  walk  of  life. 

It  is  refreshing  to  know  that  there  are  great  forces  for 
good  at  work  in  the  business  world ;  that  improvements  are 
but  the  natural  expression  of  uplifted  thought;  that  ex- 
ample, purer  motives,  higher  ideals,  and  the  rivalry  of 
excellence  are  leavening  the  world;  that  oppression  is 
decreasing  in  order  that  spontaneous  effort  may  be  utihzed ; 
that  courtesy  and  kindness  are  gaining  recognition  as 
factors  of  success;  and  that  men  are  learning  to  love  their 

daily  work  because  through  it  they  feel  the  divine  impulse. 

236 


THOUGHTS        ON        BUSINESS 

THE   OUTLOOK 

Sometimes  when  I  think  of  the  days  that  are  before  us, 
and  the  better  things  that  a  few  more  decades  of  progress 
must  surely  bring  —  the  fuller  fruitage  of  certain  general 
tendencies  for  good  now  springing  up;  the  fuller  utiHza- 
tion  of  the  undeveloped  power  and  resources  in  men  and 
women ;  the  higher  ideals  and  standards  as  to  the  moral 
and  aesthetic  phases  of  business  life;  the  gravitation  of 
more  rational  men  toward  the  control  of  industrial  affairs ; 
the  awakening  of  popular  appreciation  of  the  opportunities 
of  self- improvement;  the  uprooting  of  biased  theories 
which  warp  the  judgment  and  misguide  men  and  organiza- 
tions; the  reform  of  systems  and  policies  to  more  properly 
conserve,  develop,  and  distribute  the  energy,  materials, 
and  products  of  industry;  the  increase  in  the  spirit  which 
welcomes  constructive  criticism;  the  rapidly  increasing 
improvements  in  mechanics,  architecture,  and  systems  of 
transportation  and  communication;  a  wider  recognition 
of  individual  rights  to  comfortable  working  conditions, 
peace  of  mind,  leisure,  and  the  fruit  of  one's  labor;  and 
the  broad-minded  co-operation  in  efforts  that  make  for  the 
common  good  —  I  cannot  but  feel  that  the  outlook  is 
cheering,  and  that  the  moments  are  all  too  few  in  which 
to  fully  prepare  ourselves  to  intelligently  appreciate  and 
take  a  worthy  part  in  the  activities  and  enjoyments  of 
that  time. 


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